A Young Hylian's Journey
by Agent Ghost-Writer 000
Summary: In the world of Soul Calibur, a new arrival in the form of a boy in green appears to save his home from the threat of Soul Edge. Rated T to be on the safe side. Link x ? Pairings undecided.
1. Chapter 1 - Elf Boy

**So after reading fanfiction for nearly fifteen years, I finally worked up the motivation to start writing myself. The first fanfiction stories I read were from the Legend of Zelda, and so I thought I'd start with that. As I started doing so, I was losing motivation before the Soul Calibur II/Zelda crossover crossed my brain, and so I decided to write a story on that.**

 **I remember reading a couple such crossovers with a Young Link instead of Adult Link, and I couldn't find them anymore, and so that gave me the motivation to use Young Link for this story instead of Adult Link.**

 **This Link will be from Ocarina of Time and take place a couple years after Majora's Mask. Link will have no masks of any kind and only certain items from his journeys. I will eventually get into them as the story progresses, but I can tell you he will have bombs, the Hero's Bow and arrows, all three magic arrows, the magical Boomerang from OOT, and the Hookshot from MM among others.**

 **He will also have a new Kokiri Sword identical in appearance to OOT but have a unique feature about it and also will have the Hero's Shield from MM.**

 **I will give explanations as to why he has or doesn't have certain items in question as the story progresses, so just bear with me on that.**

 **This will take place from SC II – IV, which all appear to happen shortly after the other, whereas Soul Calibur took place three years after Soul Edge and Soul Calibur II took place four years after the first Soul Calibur. This story will probably take place over a year's worth in time overall, though. There will be no time skip to SC V; in fact this will be AU enough so that SC V will not exist (which technically it doesn't anyway since the series is being rebooted ala Mortal Kombat).**

 **Finally, I will portray Link as close as I can to his character from the games in terms of personality such as being polite, humble, and kind-hearted while also being a very courageous and fierce warrior. Socially, I intend to portray him as naïve as young Goku from Dragonball when it comes to certain things like girls (hint hint) but have some basic knowledge as to what is or is not socially acceptable related to girls and people and society in general, giving him an innocent way of expressing certain thoughts and feelings.**

 **I mean, he was raised in a forest with only children and a guardian tree around the first 10 or so years of his life, and so I think that would affect how he interacts with others without parents or adults to teach him certain things in life.**

 **That being said, pairings are undecided at this point.**

 **I do not own The Legend of Zelda or Soul Calibur.**

 **Now on with the story!**

 **-**

Chapter 1 – The Elf Boy

In the skies of Japan, the signature sun was rising. The birds were chirping to signal the morning has come. Various creatures from the fields to the forest slowly awoke to start their day. A soft wind blew across the land, gently bending the grass of the hills and the branches of the trees.

A nearby forest on occasion has various visitors, whether it's a curious animal stepping in for the first time or some humans that simply pass through. But this day, a new kind of visitor would appear, but he entered the forest in a much…different way.

Without warning, a bright blue light suddenly appeared in the forest. It started small, roughly the size of basketball, before starting to grow to the four times the size. It hummed with a low sound at first before increasing in pitch. Finally, the light exploded out, and then the figure of a boy in green suddenly materialized in its place as the light vanished.

Only when he appeared, he was roughly 30 feet in the air.

"AHHHHHH! OOF!"

He stayed still for a minute before painfully starting to get up, shaking his head to clear the dizziness.

"Oww…I guess the Sages' aim was a little off in bringing me here," he mused to himself. He rubbed his side from the impact, then stretched a bit as the pain subsided.

The boy was 12, almost 13 years old and roughly 4' 6" tall. He had on a green tunic with an equally green pair of shorts and floppy cap. He had a mahogany belt around his waist and wore brown boots that stopped 3 or 4 inches from his knees. He had deep blue eyes and golden blonde hair that was partially uncovered from the cap and parted in the middle.

But the most notable feature of all were his ears. Whereas a normal human's ears are rounded, his were long and pointed. They extended back about 3 inches with the cap touching the bridge of ears, leaving the ears completely exposed for all to see.

He also had a sword and shield on his back. The blade was a curved brown hilt with a ruby on it near the base of the blade, which itself was double-edged and roughly 18 inches in length. Rather than being the usual gray color typical for swords, this seemed to almost glow with a shade of blue (A/N: Think of how the color looks when Link first finds it and the tutorial explains what it is and how to use it).

The shield was metal with a blue background on the front with red markings in the very center with a smaller one in between the center and very bottom of the shield. In between the red markings were three golden triangles joined together to form one large triangle (A/N: The Hero's Shield from Majora's Mask.)

Once he gathered his bearings, he could immediately tell something was different. He was in a forest, it was sunny, blue sky with clouds, grass and bushes. Similar to where he was. And yet it felt…different. Even more so than Termina when he had arrived. At least there it had a sense of familiarity, possibly due to how many people looked like those from home. He had heard that a Hylian's long ear's supposedly let them hear from the goddesses. Now it seemed as if that feeling was gone.

'Maybe there was some truth to that myth after all,' he thought.

Looking around, he tried to spot anything that may give him a clue as to where to go from here. He didn't appear to be near civilization—not a manmade structure anywhere. Guess the Sages weren't able to find a location near civilization and just had to wing it.

"Oh well, just going to have to pick a direction and go," he says to himself. With that thought in mind, he looks around to see if there's a path of any kind that could take him to a town. Not seeing anything, he turns to his left slightly and starts heading forward.

After an hour of navigating through the forest, he has had no luck seeing anyone. A few familiar critters appeared every now and then such as squirrels, rabbits and birds, but nothing out of the ordinary. Finally, Link sees what appears to be the end of the woods and heads towards it. As he does, he can hear sounds of some kind as he gets closer. It sounds like…music of some kind.

Well now there's a lead.

Music means people, so maybe they can help him? As he exits the forest, he sees to his surprise a mansion of some kind with a village not too far off in the distance. A very BIG mansion. Heck it was probably as tall as Hyrule Castle and just as wide!

It had a unique rooftop. Rather than being the hard, triangular shape Link saw on Hyrule Castle, the bottom part of the roof curved upward at the corners, a design Link had never seen before. He could also see flags of some kind with various symbols on it that he also wasn't familiar with.

Hmm, this could be a problem. Maybe they use a different alphabet? Or language? This could make communication harder than Link thought. And would they be friendly or hostile? Maybe he should observe a bit first.

Where he had exited the forest, he was approaching the side of the mansion. Seeing a good-sized rock to hide behind, he stealthily approaches it and ducks down. He hears footsteps walking by, causing Link to freeze. Did they spot him?

The guard looks around for a bit before walking off away from Link, causing Link to sigh in relief. He then got a better look at the guard. He was armored from head to toe with a sword strapped to its waist. The helmet, rather than being rectangular at the neck, curved off at the bottom from the sides to the back, sort of reminding Link of an upside-down coal kettle.

Warriors of some kind. Could it be a castle instead?

Link then turns his attention to the village. From the distance, Link can hear music and many people talking and singing from what he can tell. It sounds like a carnival or festival of some kind. But what they were singing Link couldn't understand.

Great. Seems they DO speak a different language after all. That will make things much harder for him.

His thoughts were interrupted as suddenly an alarm was raised, alerting the guards as they start rushing all over the place. Link could hear guards yelling all over and going inside the mansion/castle, and then it sounded like that were yelling…in pain?

Suddenly, a body shot through the window on the second floor, landing hard on the ground. Link could tell by the armor that it was a guard…and blood coming out of his neck.

Then a second person came out the window, this one landing on her feet. Link could see it was a girl, albeit older than him. She was wearing a tattered green outfit with purple sleeves and gloves, and she had blue-green hair. She wore green pants with armored shins and what looked to be like green feathers adorned around her neck, wrists, and thighs. She was holding what appeared to be a…ring blade of some kind, with red stains on it. Link's eyes narrowed as she must have been the one to kill that guard, and probably more inside.

She looks back up from the window with a smirk before turning forward, holding out an object in her hands as she started running towards the forest to escape, not seeing Link from her position. Link only got a glimpse of the object before she started running, but he still recognized what she was holding.

It was a glowing shard of metal…just like the one Link has!

Putting two and two together at what she had done and why, Link then started chasing after her.

Tira smiled to herself as she ran into the woods. Her master would be so pleased to have yet another shard of Soul Edge! She pocketed the shard as she continued running, weaving her way through the forest with ease. She eventually made her way to a clearing overlooking a cliff with a river below. And there's the bridge, just as she planned it.

Her eyes then widened in surprise as she hears a noise to the side. 'What? The guards had followed me? How?' She made sure no one was pursuing her when she ran from the mansion, so how did they catch up to her?

She is surprised again at the person who was following her, exiting from the forest off to the side and effectively cutting her off from the bridge. It wasn't a guard that had followed her—instead, it was a boy! Maybe 12 or 13 years old at most.

'A kid? A kid was following me? And where did he come from?'

She saw he was maybe 4' 6" and a slim build. He wore brown boots and a green outfit with a floppy cap she's seen in Europe before. What was a European kid doing way out here? And a sword and shield to boot?

"Sayna gi! Koso feema shorpa!"

Tira tilted her head in confusion. What kind of language is that? Romanian? Gaelic? Latin? Certainly not Japanese. Or English for that matter.

"I don't know what you just said, kid."

Link then tilts his head in confusion. Yep, definitely a different language. And the one she spoke sounded different than the guards he heard speaking earlier.

"You have a lot of guts following me, little boy, hehehe," she giggles. Her eyes widen a bit as she suddenly sees something she hadn't noticed earlier. His ears. They were much longer than normal. Kind of like…

"OHHH, are you an elf!?" she suddenly squeals.

Link was taken aback a bit by her sudden change in attitude. "Ohhh, Tira has never seen an elf before! You are such an interesting boy," still squealing in delighted surprise. They look at each other a bit in silence, Tira in curiosity of the strange boy, Link in caution as he analyzed her.

"Unfortunately, I am in a hurry…though Tira has never killed an elf before…" she said, trailing off at the end. She contemplated whether to kill him and spill his blood or escape before any of the guards find her.

Link had no idea what she was saying, but the tone suggested she was threatening, maybe taunting him as well. She looks him over a bit before pulling out her weapon, having made her decision. "I wonder if your blood is interesting, too," she states with another giggle.

Link then draws his sword and shield in response. "Ohhh, the little elf wants to play?"

She then takes note of his weaponry. The sword has a brown handle with a ruby housed in it. The hilt is curved near the blade, which itself is double-edged and roughly 15-18 inches long. The shield is like a medieval design, only child-sized with a blue background and red markings she didn't recognize.

"Alright! Let's play!" she shouts as she charged forward.

She swings her ring blade in multiple slicing motions, which Link blocks with his sword. He's then forced to duck a kick to his head and then roll to the side to avoid another swipe of her blade.

"Hmph, you're a slippery one, aren't you?"

Link doesn't reply, instead taking his turn to charge. He makes a horizontal swing, followed by a diagonal slash, each parried by the girl. She counters with a horizontal swing of her own, of which Link parries upward. Undeterred, she uses the momentum to spin around with another swing. Link in turn blocks with his shield and spins a 360 and manages to land a slash across her abdomen.

It was only a small scratch, but it was enough to make her growl in anger at being hit by this kid. "Not bad, elf boy. Let's see you try this!" she yells as she launches a flurry of swings. Link suddenly had trouble keeping up, her movements becoming more erratic and harder to predict. Her swings eventually led Link to step down an incline in the ground. Seeing this, Tira jumps high and thrusts her ring blade down at him, which he narrowly dodges with a step back, and it sticks in the ground with the hole between her and Link, and in a surprising move, she jumps through the ring and gives Link a double-kick to the face, knocking him off his feet.

Link quickly backflips upright, only for Tira to follow up with a series of slashes, one of them nipping his left cheek. She then follows with a strong back kick to his chin, knocking him off his feet again. She jumps high again, and this time does a front flip in the air before slamming down her weapon at him, only to grunt in annoyance as he rolled to the side at the last second before sweeping her legs to knock her down and then retreating to gain some breathing room.

Despite the hits she got on him, she was frustrated she couldn't get a fatal blow on him. He's surprisingly good for a kid, she thought, as they clashed blades once again.

Link had fought some tough foes before, but no one had fought like she did. Not only did she have such a unique weapon, but she was almost like…dancing when she swung the blade around. Sometimes swinging the blade around her own body, even.

As the fight progressed, Link was getting more used to her movements. If he could just find an opening in her fighting style…

Suddenly an idea comes to Link, as he backflips away from another slash.

"I will spill your blood, you annoying little elf!" she yells, having missed yet again. She gives another series of slashes, but as she tries to hit him with downward strike, Link suddenly sidesteps, and with a quick motion, sticks his sword on the inside of her ring blade, and with her added momentum, he gives a hard swing that causes Tira to be pulled off her feet. She has no time to contemplate what happened as she suddenly falls to the ground on her side, but surprisingly held on to her weapon.

Reacting quickly, she tries to get up to her feet, swinging her ring blade behind her, only for Link to swing it aside and tackle her hard, causing her to drop her weapon. They roll a few times on the ground in somersault motions, both trying to overpower the other. When their momentum stops, they find themselves with Tira laying down and Link on top of her, sword poised at her throat (A/N: Link's Power Roll throw, only the last part changed to holding the sword over her throat instead of slamming the sword into her).

When Tira gathers her bearings, her eyes widen in surprise. She was defeated…by this kid? The servant to Soul Edge, defeated by a child?

The thought swelled her with anger and humiliation, but the boy pushing the sword closer to her throat stopped her from moving. They stare into each other's eyes, both breathing heavily. Neither one making a move.

Tira's eyes suddenly turn into a defeated look, but is confused after half a minute with nothing happening. "Well? What are you waiting for? Kill me already."

Link doesn't move. Although he couldn't understand her, based on the change in her eyes and tone in her voice, he guessed she was wondering why he hadn't killed her yet.

Link, however, wasn't entirely sure what to do. While he knows she killed those guards, Link still didn't like to kill anyone. Slaying demons, beasts, an evil wizard, and evil mask spirits were one thing. Slaying a person was another, and as much as she might deserve it, Link couldn't bear himself with killing another person.

With a heavy sigh, Link slowly crawls off of her, much to Tira's confusion. She doesn't move, though, his sword still poised at her throat as he moved but still surprised at his actions nonetheless. Why didn't he kill her? His blade still pointed at her, he kneels down on her right side. He then gestures with his right hand towards Tira's waist, where the shard resides.

Tira, still laying down on her back, looks to where he was gesturing, her eyes widening before narrowing in understanding. He wants the shard for himself…but why not just kill her and be done with it?

Wait. Maybe…he doesn't want to kill her? Is he being…merciful?

She had heard of the term but never experienced it before. All she had been raised to do is kill, kill, and kill some more. This weird feeling is just so…different. And not sure if she likes it before another thought then came to her.

'Maybe he's never killed before?'

That would make sense. Only those who haven't killed would act like this. Maybe she can use that to her advantage…

It appears he wants her to grab it, though. Smart boy. That way she can't so easily grab his hand to try to escape. She slowly moves a hand up in a surrendering gesture, then slowly moves it to her waist with the shard hanging from it in a bag. She gently pulls it out of the pouch, slowly raising it up. Just as Link is about to grasp it…

"Maybe she's this way!" A shout causes Link to turn his head, a mistake Tira takes advantage of as she knocks Link off of her and rolls to the side. In her haste, the shard comes loose towards the cliff, landing ten feet from the edge.

She quickly gets up and heads towards the shard, grabbing her weapon in the process. Just as she thinks she's got it, another hand grabs it at the same time. She grunts in frustration as the boy and her struggled for control of it, their hands waving around in the air in the process.

Link finally is able to clasp it in his hand, but Tira grabs his wrist in return and tries to pry it with her other hand. Link does his best to resist, having sheathed his weapons to run at top speed. The two flail around, trying to gain control over the other and the shard. Finally, with a hard tug, Tira is able to wrestle the shard away. But in the process, she loses her balance, flailing around on one foot…right by the edge of the cliff.

"Oh no…Whoa, whoa. Come on, come on!" She tries desperately to steady herself, but the added weight of her weapon clasped to her back proves to be her literal downfall as she topples over the edge.

"No, NO-AHHHHH-UWAH!…uh…What?"

Tira looks down, and she's…not falling? She blinks a couple times, seeing her legs dangling before finally looking up to her savior. The boy was bent over the cliff edge, his left hand grasping Tira's wrist.

'What in the…the elf boy…saved me?' Why would he save her? A wave of emotions rushed through her as she tried to process what was happening, emotions she had never experienced before and flowed through her all at once.

'What are all these feelings? And why am I feeling them to begin with?'

The boy started pulling her up, which brought her back to reality. He seemed to have no problem pulling her up, which surprised her on the inside as to just how strong he was.

Soon, she finds herself back on solid ground, and is brought out of her thoughts as she feels the boy help her stand up. When she gathers her thoughts, she finds herself surprised to see them facing each other…and holding hands. Too stunned at what just happened, she just stares at the boy's surprisingly deep blue eyes, with equaling surprising concern and relief in his eyes, and a light blush on his face.

"Mah do wa okay?"

"Huh?"

Tira heard him speak that strange language again. Was he asking if she was alright?

"Over there! There she is!"

The two are interrupted by four guards who had finally caught up to them.

"Sorry kid, got to run!" She states as she abruptly shoves the boy off the cliff before running to the bridge. As she crosses, she looks down just in time to see the boy splash into the river below. She is suddenly filled with yet another emotion she never had before, and not a pleasant one. For some reason, her heart seemed to clench a bit in a way she didn't like. Just what is going on here?

"Stop her!"

An arrow whizzes by her head, jolting her out of her thoughts, followed by more arrows as she crosses the bridge. A guard tried to cross as well, only to have to jump back as Tira cuts the ropes off. The other guards pull their man to safety who had managed to hang onto the bridge when it fell. They briefly stare at Tira who stares back for a bit before they all look back down where the boy fell, but could find no sign of him. Did he survive? Did he drown?

And there was that strange feeling again. Once again, she tried to figure out what it was. It was so foreign to her, having never felt it before.

It was as if she feels…regret? Guilt?

'What is wrong with me? Why am I feeling this way?' She looks a little longer wondering about her feelings before taking off. Just as she disappears from sight, she realizes something is missing…

"The shard!"

She pats herself down, frantically looking around for any sign of it before realization hits her. The elf boy! But how could he have…Of course! While he was helping her up!

She remembered him pulling her up from the cliff—now she knows why he saved her—then helped her up to her feet, and then held her hands, which for some reason brought a small blush on her face, and then…that's it!

He took the shard while holding her hands! It was still in her other hand while she was hanging from the cliff, and he secretly took it before she even realized it!

"That sneaky little brat, taking the shard from me like that! Oh, master is going to be so disappointed in me!" she shouts dejectedly before turning away.

How did it get to this point? She steals the shard of Soul Edge as planned, kills many guards to her delight, even killed a strange warrior in magenta wearing a mask who didn't look to be the normal guards (still not sure who that was), escapes to the woods, then finds she was followed by a strange elf boy in green.

They fight with him winning (he was just lucky!), only for him to get distracted as he tries to take the shard from her. After a struggle, she gains the shard back only to fall off the edge of the cliff. Before she falls, the boy rescued her before she pushed him off and escaped across the bridge…without the shard.

That last thought filled her with a more familiar emotion. Anger. Now she has to figure out how to get that shard back. If she doesn't, the master will be most displeased, and one thing she does not like to do is disappoint her master.

"Tira will get you for this, you cute little elf boy! If you're not dead already, you soon will be! Mark my words...ELF BOY!"

As she escapes into the woods to plan her next move, one more confusing thought suddenly enters her mind.

"Did I just call him cute?"

 **A/N: What do you think? When it comes to my writing, I took inspiration from Sergio Leone's direction of The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly where anything the camera sees is exactly what the characters see (with rare exceptions) and that it has a narrative but requires enough length to sufficiently tell the story. This also includes their thoughts. For example, when focusing on what Tira's thinking, I'll refer to Link as like "the boy" or "Elf Boy" and when focusing on Link, I'll refer to her as like "the girl in green" or "her" since they don't know each other's names at this point. Hope that makes sense.**

 **Then I try to shorten it enough so it doesn't upset the flow of the story while not being too long. Please read and review and let me know how I'm doing for my first try :)**

 **This is Agent Ghost-Writer 000 signing off.**


	2. Chapter 2 - Adapting to New World

**I do not own The Legend of Zelda or Soul Calibur.**

 **Chapter 2 - Adapting to New World**

A pair of deep blue eyes rested peacefully before they slowly started to open. As Link starts adjusting his eyes to the light, he can hear someone speaking, but can't quite make it out.

"You're awake!"

Link groaned in pain, shaking his head a bit. He tried to sit up before a massive migraine came to him. "Easy, child. You took a massive blow to the head."

Slowly his vision started coming into focus. He put a hand to his skull and felt a bandage on it. Strange, where did that come from? And who was talking to him?

After finally gathering his bearings, Link turned his head towards the source of the voice. He was a man that looked to be in his late fifties to early sixties, graying hair tied in a bun in the back and wore a fancy dark blue robe of some kind. "Are you feeling alright?"

Link could only tilt his head in confusion. Again, the language barrier was there. The older man seemed to sense this and tried speaking Japanese instead of English, only to get the same result. "Hmm, I see you do not know either language," he stated. "Well, even though you cannot understand me, it is good to see you are alive and well. I'm amazed you did not drown."

Link stared at him a bit, but felt by his tone that he was pleased to see him awake. He looked around, wondering where he was and how he got then. Then suddenly he blinked as something flashed in his mind as tried to recall what happened…

* * *

 _(Flashback)_

 _Link had just pulled the girl to safety. As he helped her up, she grabbed his other hand to help steady herself. Once she stood upright again, he then realizeed two things: One, the shard had slipped into his hand while she held his hand; and two, they were holding hands. For some reason, he felt a weird feeling inside of him he couldn't explain that caused him to blush a bit. He recalled feeling something like it back home, particular around girls, but could never figure out what it was or why he felt that way. It wasn't unpleasant by any means_ _—_ _actually it was kind of...nice in a strange way. Sometimes it felt...nicer than others, depending on what the girl did that made him feel that way._

 _Mentally shaking it off (though still holding hands), he looked back at her, who was still looking at their hands before looking at him. A blush soon appeared on her face as well. Did she feel something like what he's feeling, too?_

 _"Are you okay?" She tilted her head in confusion. That's right, she doesn't understand him. Suddenly, they hear a shout from behind. Before he could do anything, she said something he couldn't understand and then abruptly pushed him off the cliff, falling towards the river as he screamed._

 _His mind raced trying to figure out what to do. 'Crap! I don't think my Hookshot can reach anything and I don't have my Zora mask. What do I do?...Wait! That's it!' Pocketing the shard, he closes his eyes and concentrates as he approaches the river. As he comes within five feet of the river, he yells, "Homarta, Zora!"_

 _In an instant, his green tunic and hat turned blue. He splashed into the river diving headfirst, only to widen his eyes at the rock he was about to hit that wasn't even six feet from the surface before blacking out._

 _(Flashback end)_

* * *

Link suddenly sat upright, only to immediately regret it as the migraine came back.

"Easy, there. Try not to strain yourself, young one."

The man could tell by the boy's eyes that he was recalling the events that had occurred and seemed to have remembered what happened based on his reaction. Given the blow to his head, he half wondered if he would have had memory loss as well. So far it does not appear so. After the boy settled down, he looked towards him before speaking.

"Kamo sate I?"

The man frowned at the unfamiliar language. He had traveled to different parts of Asia, even some of Europe, but this was one language he did not recognize or sound vaguely familiar in any way. "Just as I thought, we have different languages," he said out loud, though more to himself than the boy.

The two looked at each other in silence before another arrived. This one was a much younger woman, likely in her late twenties. She had black hair in a ponytail and was wearing an orange plaid robe with black lining and a red strap at the waist. She gave a smile as she placed a bowl with food in it on a nearby table. Link looked at the bowl before looking back her, who gave an eating gesture and a nod. As soon as she nodded, Link's stomach growled, prompting an amused look from the two and Link to blush a bit in embarrassment.

'Apparently they don't use spoons here?' Link thought when he was instead handed two wooden sticks to eat with. However, whenever handed or shown something unfamiliar to him, Link always had a habit of observing and imitating what others did when it came to local customs. He gratefully took the bowl, which appeared to consist of noodles with some meat and vegetables in it, and did his best to eat them in the same way as the man and woman.

The two observed the boy struggle to use the chopsticks, apparently not familiar with such utensils. However, after a quick demonstration, Link caught on quickly before consuming the bowl.

'He must be a quick learner,' thought the man. After Link had finished, he was handed a cup of water, which he accepted.

Once they were done eating and the dishes were put away, the three sat down again. 'Now, how to communicate with the boy. Perhaps introductions can be made.' Link watched the man point to himself and then say, "Hachibei." Then he pointed to the woman. "Chie," he states before looking at Link expectedly.

Link then imitated the man. "Hachibei," he repeated while pointing towards the man, who nods in confirmation. "Chie," pointing towards her, who also nods. He then points at himself. "Link."

"Link," the man repeated, causing Link to nod with a small smile. The man gave a small smile in return. At least they got each other's names. Now, how to teach him a language…

* * *

(Time skip, 2 weeks)

It had been an interesting two weeks for the household. Link had been learning the new languages from the man Hachibei while also helping around the house once he sufficiently recovered. Link later learned that Chie was mute, which was why he never heard her speak. But she was a pleasant woman and they got along well. Chie in turn was taken in by the boy. He was polite, humble, and an overall nice young man. What she liked most was when he played that blue egg-shaped instrument of his. He seemed to be musically talented and knew a wide variety of tunes.

Link also was introduced to her son, Riki, who was six years old. The two got along well and enjoyed playing games with each other, laughing and running around all about the place. He tried to learn to play the ocarina, but could only get out screeching shrills at best, much to Link's displeasure as Riki would later try to take his ocarina and intentionally make such sounds just to annoy him (and his mother).

As for Hachibei, he was impressed with how well the boy picked up on the English language. He was indeed a quick learner, just as he suspected, although still was having difficulty with Japanese as he could only speak a broken version of it. When he saw the Triforce symbol, he asked the boy if he knew of the Hojo Clan who used that same symbol, but Link stated he never heard of them. Apparently, it was just a coincidental usage of the same design. Hachibei did state he liked what the Triforce represented.

Balance.

In particular, the balance of Power, Wisdom, and Courage and how they must all be equal in amount or one's heart would not be in balance—similar to how a three-legged stool would be off-balance if even one leg was different in length than the others.

When he first saw the sword and shield, he was a bit troubled by it. Why would a child possess such weapons? He hadn't even taught his own grandson to fight yet. And then there was a scroll with lettering he didn't recognize as well as various images on it. Just what was that? And most importantly, the glowing shard he had on him. He knew exactly what it was.

A shard of the evil blade Soul Edge.

He recognized it as soon as he saw it, prompting him to place it in a box with a seal on it to keep its energy from being sensed by others. The rest of the Fu-Ma Clan would no doubt sense it and cause them trouble if left out in the open.

He had so many questions he wanted to ask him in those two weeks. Where did he come from? Where did he learn to fight? Who gave him his weapons? And most importantly, just what was the boy doing with the evil shard on him and where did he obtain it? Did he even know what it was?

Because of the language barrier, he did not immediately press the issue. The fact he acted so polite, was willing to help around the house, and was so far a positive influence on his family helped him give the boy the benefit of the doubt for the time being.

Hachibei, Link learned, was once a leader of a ninja clan called the Fu-Ma clan. Their purpose was to act as demon hunters and slay or seal any demons that threaten this world. Since they operated in the shadows, it reminded him of the shadow folk back home, the Sheikah. They even seemed to use similar techniques and fighting styles to an extent.

However, Toki, the current leader of the Fu-Ma clan, had become corrupt and tried to obtain the Mekki-Maru, an enchanted blade with dark power not unlike Soul Edge. Hachibei stole it to prevent Toki from getting it and becoming further corrupted by it. Chie, too, thought something was wrong with Toki, and ran off with her father. This caused them to be marked for death by the clan.

They soon encountered a man named Li Long who would eventually live with them and marry Chie, but one day he had thought Chie had been killed in an inn by a wandering swordsman who was after Soul Edge. He in turn went after Soul Edge to find this man, but he never came back, and no one has heard of him since.

Prior to Li Long's departure, they were visited by a childhood friend of Chie's named Taki who was also a Fu-Ma ninja. Hachibei entrusted the Mekki-Maru to her so as to hide it from Toki, but he would soon find out about her actions and then marked Taki for death as well. They have not been in contact since that day seven years ago.

Link couldn't help but have a dislike for this Toki. It somewhat reminded him of Ganondorf and his obsession with obtaining power and how he used his influence to trick people, including his own, to get what he wanted—even if that meant killing people or brainwashing them to do it.

While Link was learning the languages, the two would also spar on occasion, and Hachibei was further impressed with his fighting skill. He could tell the boy was good with how fluid he moved and showed no hesitation in his actions. What was even more impressive was that he learned that no one had really taught Link how to fight—the boy was entirely self-taught.

Such a thing was virtually unheard of for a boy his age, or any age for that matter.

Then one day they got really serious with their spar. Not a fight to the death kind of battle, but an intense spar nonetheless. That's when Link seemed to trigger something inside of him. Gone was the innocent look in his eyes—instead, it was replaced with a fierce look of intense sharpness.

The focused look. The dilated pupils. The sheer intensity of his eyes. When Hachibei first saw this transformation, he couldn't help but be surprised at how hardened they were. Those weren't the eyes of a regular boy with some fighting skill.

Those were the eyes of a hardened warrior, one who had seen and experienced many battles and hardships in life.

Link in turn was impressed with how well Hachibei fought. He could tell there was a reason Hachibei was a leader of the clan. He wasn't able to defeat him once in those first two weeks, even though he fought very well against him. However, as they continued, Hachibei had to continue to up his game while giving Link some pointers on his style. Each time Link received advice from him, he would steadily improve and last longer, which again forced Hachibei to up his game more.

Then when they were not holding back, Link surprised him again by almost holding him to a draw before Hachibei surprised him with a diving slash in the air, which Link barely managed to deflect with his shield but was off-balanced as a result, allowing Hachibei to get behind him and hold a blade to his throat.

The only thing confusing for Link was Hachibei refused to let him use his own sword, instead using one of his kodachi blades that was similar in length only curved and single-edged. He stated it was because it emitted an energy that could be detected by others, and so he kept it sheathed with a seal over it to suppress its energy. Hachibei did not ask about the specifics of the sword yet, wanting to wait until Link spoke fluently enough in at least one language he knew before asking about it and the other questions he had.

Finally, after two weeks of him living with them and now that he was grasping at least the English language sufficiently enough, Hachibei felt it was time to get some answers from the boy on where he came from and what he was _really_ doing in Japan.

"Link."

Link, who had been helping Chie with sweeping, stopped and turned towards him.

"I think it's time."

Link frowned a bit but understood what he meant. He wanted answers. On the shard, his sword, who he was, where he came from, everything. It wasn't something he was looking forward to, but he knew it would have to be discussed eventually. They had let him stay with them when they could have easily thrown him out (or maybe killed him, or leave him to die for that matter) upon seeing the shard he had, but they instead they took him in and helped him adapt to this world, even help him learn to communicate with them. Without them, Link would have found it much more difficult to get anywhere in finding Soul Edge, probably struggling with hand gestures, maybe making crude drawings to others just to try to say "Where am I?" or "Where is an inn?" or something similar.

Nodding in acceptance, he set the broom down before walking to Hachibei. They kneeled down in the middle of the room and sat in silence for a bit.

Hachibei could tell the boy was a little uncomfortable, but he needed to know now. "Now then Link, I know there are some questions you are hesitant to answer, but I need to know what you know. To start, where are you from? What do you know of this metal shard, and how did you get a hold of it?"

Link shifted uncomfortably at the number of questions. 'Maybe I shouldn't have asked so many questions at once,' he thought sheepishly.

Link in turn was wondering what he should reveal. How much should he tell him? About Hyrule and how it's in another world, the wizard that attacked it, the visions Princess Zelda had seen…He seems like a decent man. He did mention his secret of being on the run from his former people, and he hadn't asked about anything previously when he had ample time to do so. Maybe he can tell him. Just…not all at once.

"I'm not from around here, as if you couldn't tell."

"Indeed, I don't think I know anyone that has such long ears," he said with a wry smile.

Link gave a small smile in return. Long ears was obviously not a common trait in this world. Deciding to just get it out, he took a deep breath. "I traveled from afar in search of an evil blade that was threatening my home." There, he said it.

"Hmm..." Hachibei gave an intense gaze at that. So he _is_ searching for the evil sword. He was somewhat relieved that he knew it was evil, but was alarmed that he, a child, was searching for it. He also noted how he didn't say precisely where he was from. "I see. And, if I may ask, just where is your home? Are you from anywhere in Europe, by any chance? Greece? Hungary? Scandinavia?"

He saw Link shift uncomfortably again. Obviously it was a tender subject for him. "I'm…not familiar with any of those places," he replies slowly. "The land I'm from is called Hyrule. I doubt anyone else knows where it is."

Hachibei frowned at that. Hyrule, huh? Well, he has a name to his home, but not a location. And yet somehow Soul Edge is threatening it, or so he says. He decides to give him the benefit of the doubt for the time being, raising his arm in a placating manner. "Alright. I can tell you want to keep the location of your home a secret. That is fine, I will not pry," bringing a relieved face to Link.

"But if your home is threatened as you say it is, why would they send a child to handle this? While I know you are skilled for your age, surely your people would have sent someone considerably…no offense, older and more experienced, would they not? And is there anyone else they sent besides you?"

Link stayed silent for a bit with a frown on his face. He was expecting him to ask that, and he could understand why. He took a deep breath before responding. "No, I was sent alone. I know this will be hard to believe, but I had saved Hyrule from evil before."

Hachibei raised an eyebrow at that. He had saved his land from peril before? He was about to retort but then he saw the serious look in his eyes. Those hardened eyes he had seen previously. They stared at each other in silence for a bit before Hachibei spoke up. "Is that so…and if I may ask, how did you save it exactly, and what did you save it from?"

Link expected him to be doubtful of his claim. After all, Link was only 12, almost 13. Well, technically 19, almost 20, but that was (literally) in another time. He took another deep breath. "A dark wizard had suddenly appeared wielding a shard of the evil blade. He caused many disasters and killed many people. No one knew where he came from or why he was attacking, but I took it upon myself to stop him, which I did—although it wasn't easy." Hachibei noted he rubbed a part of his side. He had seen the scar when Link was changing after a bath in a nearby spring, along with other scars on his body, which had further confirmed he was a hardened warrior.

"The Princess of Hyrule had a vision of an evil blade that resonated with the same energy as the shard the wizard had. She knew I was the one that had slain the wizard, but the rest of the country was unaware. Together we had previously saved Hyrule from another wizard named Ganondorf, who was even more powerful than the other one. She secretly entrusted me with this mission to destroy this sword so it wouldn't threaten Hyrule again, as she knew there was no one else who could do it."

The last part was said with a hint of sadness, something Hachibei took note of. And this "Ganondorf" was stronger than this other wizard and yet they defeated him? For each answer he gets, it just seems to lead to more questions.

He had Link explain the incident with this "Ganondorf" and how he, the Princess, and these six sages stopped him. After conversing and interacting with Hachibei for the past two weeks, for some reason Link felt he could probably tell him more than he was originally planning. He left out Hyrule was in another world, but did mention his adventures in stopping Ganondorf.

Hachibei listened quietly, chiming in with a question or comment every now and then. If it had been anyone else, he would have felt the boy was exaggerating. And yet the detail he provided in his explanations, combined with the spars they've had and the scars he saw on Link, led him to believe that he was telling the truth.

He asked about this "Triforce of Courage" Link said to have had at one point, but he said he had to leave it behind in Hyrule for its protection. Rather than simply give it to the Princess, she suggested splitting it up into eight shards and hiding them across the land so as to help prevent anyone from stealing it, for the Princess herself could not wield it, and its presence near another Triforce piece might attract too much attention. A separate map to find each shard was created and scattered in separate areas as well. This way, only one worthy of braving the challenges in finding these shards could one day possess the Triforce of Courage.

Then Hachibei asked about the second shard of Soul Edge he had on him, of which Link explained his encounter with the woman in green with the ring blade, the fight by the cliff, and the blue tunic that let Link survive underwater. That last part was definitely surprising. If the Fu-Ma, or anyone for that matter, learned to reverse-engineer such clothing, it could revolutionize warfare.

Which is why Hachibei has no intention of revealing that piece of information to anyone, along with other secrets and items Link had shown.

Then there was the woman in green. He's seen his share of warriors, male and female alike, as well as various unique weaponry, but he had to admit that was a new one on him. He'll have to keep an eye out for her. She seemed to be a visitor to these lands just as Link was, but is definitely of this world as Link had said her ears were not long like his.

"Hmm, I see," he stated after hearing about this girl in green. Then another question came to mind, namely about his sword.

"I have another question, Link. This one relates to your sword," he stated while pointing towards it. "As you know, although I could not sense any evil from it, I kept it sealed so no Fu-Ma clan member would sense it and compromise our safety. It seems to emit a positive energy compared to that emitted by Soul Edge. Tell me, do you know why this is?"

Link looked briefly at the sword before looking back at Hachibei and nodding. "Yes. When we took the shard from the sorcerer, the Princess and her handmaiden used some kind of spell to purify the shard from its evil. They used the power and energy from the Master Sword and Light Arrows to do so. Once it was purified, it was then forged into the sword you see now."

"I see..." he replied while leaning back into a thoughtful pose. He was about to ask another question about the Master Sword but stopped himself, staying silent for a couple minutes he processed everything he had been told from start to present. Finally, he spoke up.

"I must say, you've had quite the experience at such a young age." Link could only chuckle nervously at that. He hadn't even mentioned him saving the land of Termina from an evil mask-spirit, who tried to destroy it by crashing a moon with a scary face into it.

Hachibei then decided to lay his cards out on the table. "I'm going to go out on a limb and say you are not from this world at all, are you?" He said it as more of a statement than a question. He saw Link widen his eyes considerably and become nervous all of a sudden, and that confirmed his suspicions. Before Link could reply, Hachibei continues. "It is alright, I promise you I will keep your secrets, just as I know you will not reveal any secrets of ours."

Link looked back at Hachibei, surprise still on his face. So he did know after all? Given how insightful and intelligent he was, Link figured it wasn't that surprising. But when he said he would not tell anyone about it, Link allowed a small smile to form on his face before nodding and saying "Thank you." Hachibei returns with a small smile and nod in return.

They are interrupted by a knock and they see Chie at the door.

"Ah, dinner is ready. Come. We can continue our discussion later. Right now I'm starving and Chie was making one of my favorite dishes." The two then follow Chie to help set the table.

* * *

The favorite dish turned out to be miso ramen soup. Link never ate noodles of any kind before, and he found it to be a delicious food that can have many different flavors added the first time he had it. Riki seemed to like it the most, often devouring many bowls and sometimes making a mess in the process, much to Link and Hachibei's amusement (and Chie's chagrin). One time Link and Riki had a little food fight, with food particles splashed all over the room and everyone's clothes, which prompted a very stern and angry look from Chie.

Link didn't realize how intimidating the woman could be when she was angry. She was even more intimidating than Saria when one time he accidentally splashed her with water when doing a cannonball on a dare by Mido. She was practicing her ocarina by the stream before getting soaking wet by Link. Link was unable to see her from his original diving position, and the angry look on her face was one he wasn't going to forget. He then had to run away to try to avoid her wrath, much to Mido's amusement who was laughing hysterically at him.

Chie then made the two clean everything up and then do laundry as punishment. Link then made a mental note not to make her (or any) woman angry like that again.

This time there was no food fight or major messes made. Instead, Link shared his adventures with Chie and Riki, who were in awe and disbelief at what they were told. If Hachibei hadn't stated he believed him, they weren't sure they would have.

"I cannot imagine how much of a burden it has been, at so young an age, to have gone through all that only to be entrusted to yet another perilous journey," he states to Link in a somewhat sorrowful tone, which is reflected in Link's face. "If I may ask, why do you choose to face such dangers at so young an age? What motivates you to be willing to bear such burdens?"

Link blinks a bit at that question before going into a serious thinking position. As he thought about it, why _did_ he continue to face such dangers? He had to admit, he hardly gave much of a second thought to the dangers he would face when he first started his journey in Hyrule. People needed help, he was taught to help people whenever he could, Link did have the power to help, and so he went off to help them. At the time, it was as simple as that.

All that changed when Ganondorf succeeded in getting the Triforce. Link was filled with true fear and doubt in himself for the first time. All that planning with the Princess was all for naught. He tried to help save Hyrule, only for it to suffer due to letting Ganondorf catch him off guard when he pulled the Master Sword from its pedastal, leading Link to believe that the destruction and pain delivered to Hyrule was his fault.

Even though he found himself seven years older and physically an adult, he was still a ten-year-old in a seventeen-year-old body. Despite the reassurance from the Sage Rauru, he nearly lashed out at Sheik when he first saw him…err, her, because he was so upset with himself and first thought Sheik a potential enemy. His self-doubt showed when he first saw the destruction of Hyrule Castle Town and nearly got himself killed from the Re-Deads that surprised him as he exited the Temple of Time after the seven year gap.

Then when he saw the despairing looks on the people of Kakariko Village, who looked to have lost all hope, he finally broke down and cried in the Kakariko Graveyard. Navi the fairy, his guardian partner entrusted to him by the forest guardian, the Great Deku Tree, helped support him and give him the confidence to press on. Link was still worried that those he helped as a child would blame him for the pain and destruction they faced.

And yet his friends believed in him. Even when he saw the carnage and destruction caused to his friends-the Kokiri, the Gorons, the Zora, the Hylians. When he wanted to break down and cry at what he felt was his fault, they continued to support and believe in him. Eventually, Link was able to truly believe in himself, and throw away all self-doubt, eventually leading to Ganondorf's defeat and Hyrule restored.

Link stayed silent, trying to find the answer himself. Was it because of Saria and the Great Deku Tree and what they taught him? Was it because of not wanting to see his friends hurt? Or was it something else? Or was it a combination of things?

"Well…I'm not entirely sure myself. I grew up in a forest, but was…different from the other kids."

"Different in what way, exactly?" Hachibei asks. He knew it wasn't the ears, as he mentioned that was a common trait back in Hyrule.

Link thinks about how he wants to explain it. "Well…I wasn't born in the forest like the other kids. I was born outside the forest, in Hyrule Castle Town. When I was just a newborn, my mother was escaping the carnage of a war going on in Hyrule and was badly wounded. She escaped into the forest and entrusted me with the forest guardian before she passed away."

Link had a sad look on his face after that, and Hachibei had a soft look on his. So he was orphaned when he was young and entrusted to the care of another. It reminded him of Taki who had a similar life.

"A lot of the other kids liked to bully and tease me growing up because I was different. But Saria, my best friend, she stuck with me. She always supported me and stood by me. She and the forest guardian taught me to help people, even if they are sometimes mean, and they will accept you over time. And so, I often would ask to help with any daily tasks they had to help earn their trust. Over time, they did start warming up to me and stopped with the teasing and name calling…eventually."

The most notable case was Mido, the so called "boss" of the Kokiri children who was the worst in teasing and making fun of him. But through the course of saving Hyrule, Mido eventually saw how bad he treated Link and regretted his actions. When Mido saw Link as an adult, he didn't believe it was Link but nonetheless stated to him that if he ever saw Link again to say he was sorry for being mean to him.

That meant a lot to Link and helped reinforce what he was taught by Saria and the Great Deku Tree, and that everything was worth it with what he sacrificed in order to save Hyrule.

Link then took another breath before speaking again. "I guess…it's just my way of wanting to be accepted by others. If I help people, they'll be more accepting of me. Even if it took more time than usual, I should still help them however I can. Plus…I just get a good feeling when I help people. Like I help make a difference in the world," he adds with a small smile on his face.

Hachibei is silent for a bit as he processes what he has been told. It's rare to find someone so kind-hearted that he goes out of his way to help someone simply because he wants to, and with no expectation of reward for his efforts.

"It seems they raised you well," he said appraisingly. Link merely blushes a bit and rubs the back of his head in response, prompting a small smile from Hachibei.

After sitting in silence for a bit, he comes to a decision and stands up. "Alright, Link. I have decided."

Decided? Decided what, exactly, Link thought.

"I have decided to help you in your quest to destroy Soul Edge."

* * *

 **A/N: I thought about Link meeting Edgemaster as a mentor, but then I remembered Hachibei and thought that made more sense as Edgemaster was also training Seung Mina in China, I believe, during SC II, so I decided to stick with Hachibei.**

 **Most stories I've read with Link have him begin his journey in Europe, so I thought I'd mix it up and have him start in Japan and go from there. It will be a while before he makes the trip to Europe, but he will encounter at least three other SC characters prior to that.  
**

 **Ultimately, I am expecting Link to encounter almost all of the SC cast at some point.**

 **For now, this is Agent Ghost-Writer 000 signing off.**


	3. Chapter 3 - Link vs Hachibei

**As a quick note, in prior chapter I forgot to add a couple descriptions of what is happening based on the text:**

This is a sentence. - Narration. No character speaking or thinking.

"This is a sentence." - Character speaking out loud.

'This is a sentence.' - Character speaking in his/her head.

This _is_ a sentence. - Emphasis placed on the italic word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

This IS a sentence. - Same as with the single italic, just a variation of expressing the emphasis.

 _This is a sentence. -_ All italics means the event is happening in a flashback of which I would give a quick note prior saying a flashback is occurring.

 **I do not own The Legend of Zelda or Soul Calibur.**

* * *

 **Chapter 3 – Link vs Hachibei**

Six more weeks have passed since Link and Hachibei's conversation. In that time, Hachibei continued educating Link on the basics of how the world works in terms of cultures, customs, beliefs, some politics, and how varied they are. Link had traveled to various lands in the last two to three years in his world, but he was very much surprised at how large this world was and the diversity therein.

Link struggled learning Japanese initially, and so after the first few days, Hachibei decided to switch to English instead. He seemed to grasp it much smoother, so he focused on that before switching back to Japanese once he fully understood English. Now he is fluent in both languages. ( **A/N: I remember in the animated movie Batman/Superman: Apocalypse Superman stated that Kara, aka Supergirl, learned the English language in just one week, so I felt it wasn't too much of a stretch for Link to at least learn the bulk of it in ten or eleven days** ).

He also found they did not have Rupees in this world. Instead, each independent nation had their own respective currencies, though some nations did accept multiple kinds. Apparently, the Rupees are worth quite a lot in this world based on their reactions to seeing them for the first time. Link even stocked at a full 500 Rupees when he left Hyrule—the maximum his wallet could carry—as he wanted to be on the safe side financially. Turns out, money was just one less thing to worry to about and then some...only he had to make sure not to advertise them to potential thieves.

In addition, Hachibei helped further Link's training, continuously pushing Link's limits to his max. He also introduced Link to some other weaponry of which Link quickly became adept at using, which Hachibei noticed. It seemed he had natural ability to fight no matter what weapon he used. He could throw shuriken and kunai blades very well and was also quick to learn the katana and Bo staff. He also saw Link was already a master of the bow and arrow, so that was taken care of.

He did find that Link wasn't as adept in hand to hand combat, even though the he had some experience through the Goron and Zora masks in Termina. As such, Hachibei made sure to teach him how to fight without weapons. As expected, Link quickly picked up on the fighting styles Hachibei knew—Karate, Jiu-Jitsu, Chinese Kung Fu, and Boxing among others. Even Sumo, which Link was actually somewhat familiar with as it was the Gorons' favorite sport back home ( **A/N: Obviously in later games and not OOT or MM, but I'm treating it as if _this_ Link witnessed it in his adventures, too**). He was by no means a master of these styles...yet. Give him one or two more years training, though, and he very well could be—for ALL of them.

While training the boy, Hachibei found he had great instincts to compensate for his lack of formal training in swordsmanship. He also praised the boy's approach in looking for an enemy's weak points to exploit whenever he could; however, he had limits as to how he approached this. In most cases, Link fought against a variety of creatures and enemies with specific vulnerabilities to specific items and weapons. For example, the Slingshot and seeds against the Gohma; Bombs against the King Dodongo; the Boomerang against the Barinade; the Megaton Hammer against Volvagia; the Hookshot/Longshot against Morpha; the Mirror Shield against the Twinrova sisters; even the Light Arrows against Ganondorf himself, and later his beast form Ganon.

Each of those battles involved or were won more with tools than swords. In addition, he had help from a fairy on his biggest adventures that could specifically identify an enemy's weak points on nearly every occasion, saving him a lot of trouble in that regard.

In addition, when it came to swordfights in general, Link's experience was surprisingly not as impressive as one might think. The main enemies he fought using swords and other bladed weapons were Lizalfos, Stalfos, Iron Knuckles, Gerudo warriors (and pirates), Garro warriors, the undead King and Knights of Ikana, and a dark version of himself. This may sound like a lot, but most of them followed the same attack patterns each time he fought them with only minor deviations as Link dealt more damage to them. He also frequently used other tools and magic to assist him such as Bombs, Bombchus, Arrows, Mirror Shield, and Din's Fire.

Dark Link, he found, did not adapt well when faced with the Biggoron's Sword and did not appear to use any of the same tools Link had on him at the time, making the fight against him a bit easier than expected.

But when he first fought a Gerudo warrior, he found out the hard way how difficult it was fighting against someone with no real weaknesses to exploit and who could properly adapt and change their strategies on the fly. They were much smarter compared to the less intelligent Lizalfos and Stalfos as they constantly blocked and evaded his weapons, tools, and magic before besting him with a fierce double-slash attack Link was unprepared for. Had they properly confiscated him of his tools and weapons, he may have been stuck in his jail cell indefinitely.

As such, Hachibei focused on polishing his swordsmanship skills and battle strategies to help make him more reliant on himself and less reliant on his inventory (or fairies, if there were any in this world).

Another lesson Hachibei instilled in Link is the importance of secrets and the revealing thereof, especially in battle. When Link first demonstrated to the family his Sheikah Scroll containing the various items he had, they were all noticeably shocked in amazement, as they had never seen anything like that before—not even in the Fu-Ma Clan which practiced in various forms of magic! As such, Link found that the magic and items he had were not common in this world and should only reveal such things where absolutely necessary—and if they _are_ revealed, give a plausible cover story to explain them.

In battle, by revealing a weapon or tool too early, it gave the enemy enough time to adjust their strategy and make the weapon useless or otherwise ineffective.

This revealing of secrets also extended to his origin which, as Link suspected, would draw too much attention if revealed to anyone else. Thankfully, he felt Hachibei and his family were trustworthy to keep it a secret. Had he been found by someone else, it may have been a different story...

And now after those six long weeks of educating and training, Link and Hachibei were engaged in an all out spar to test Link's skills in a remote area, believing it wasn't something for young Riki to witness. It was agreed that they would not use any magical attacks or abilities as it would potentially attract the Fu-Ma and other ninja clans. Nonetheless, it was an intense battle between them. It was rare for Hachibei to go all out even without using any of the clan's secret ninpo techniques, and he was surprised at how well Link was holding his own. They had been sparring for over half an hour almost nonstop, both of them sweating and breathing deeply but not too heavily. Link had a number of cuts on his body and tunic as well as some on his face, though nothing serious, while Hachibei only had a few bruises and scratches on him.

Link was in his usual green tunic while Hachibei was dressed in a blue outfit with armored plates on the shoulders, lower arms, and lower legs—the latter with spikes on the knees. He also wore a metal mask that, although it still left the mouth visible, was shaped like an angry mouth of an oni to give a more intimidating look.

Hachibei was surprised at how strong Link was physically. Sure Link had some muscle in his lean figure, but they weren't bulgy in any way. And yet, Link could lift an adult male over his head with little difficulty, even throw one a good fifteen feet—which Hachibei found out once while teaching him Jiu-Jitsu.

His stamina was also impressive. With the amount of energy he forced Link to exert in this fight, he expected him to slow down considerably by now; instead, he still fully kept pace with him from start to present even when swinging at Link at high speeds—sometimes _he_ even had to keep pace with _Link_ when it was the other way around!

Hachibei had switched from a katana, to a Bo staff, to a naginata, and now to dual kodachi blades during the fight. Link stuck primarily to his trusty sword and shield combo but would occasionally use a Bo staff or katana that Hachibei lent him for the spar to mix it up. Although he did not use them heavily, he used them effectively enough to keep Hachibei at bay and force him to change his strategy each time.

He was currently back to his sword and shield combo after being disarmed of his other weapons and now was deadlocked with Hachibei's kodachi blades. Link's sword was angled upwards, trying to push against Hachibei's blades that were both angled horizontally. They both pushed hard, trying to overpower the other, but Link's single sword arm was struggling against the dual sword arms of Hachibei.

Finally, Hachibei gave a large shove to force Link back and tried to hit him with a thrust, only for Link to bend backward so it went over him. Undeterred, he sliced at Link's legs with his other blade, who then found himself constantly backflipping with his hands and feet to avoid Hachibei's constant swinging. Trying to gain some breathing room, Link jumped higher than normal during a backflip and threw some shuriken at Hachibei, who was forced to slightly pause and deflect them with his blades to avoid getting hit. However, the distraction was enough as he soon found _himself_ on the defensive as Link countered with several slashes of his own—so much so that Hachibei found himself struggling to keep up!

'Blasted old age,' he grumbled to himself as he blocked and parried Link's attacks with increased difficulty.

Link then made his move. He swung his sword in a diagonal upward strike, and just as he expected, Hachibei parried it away while spinning so as to counter with a spinning reverse-thrust with his other blade.

'I got him, now!' Link thought.

With pinpoint timing, Link gave a strong backhand with his shield to deflect Hachibei's anticipated counter-swing, who was surprised by the move as the angle of the impact forced his arm outward, making him overextend himself and prevent him from following up with his other blade like he wanted. His eyes then widened as he saw Link quickly give a straight thrust to his chest while out of position! Sadly for Link, the move wasn't entirely fast enough as it only managed to cut and not stab him as he dodged a potentially fatal strike. He elbowed and then kicked Link away before jumping back himself to gain some distance.

'That was close... _far_ closer than I expected,' Hachibei said to himself as he looked at the mark Link gave him on his stomach/waist area.

It seemed the boy was beginning to dissect his moves once again and find that one opening he needed to win, just like with his other weapons he used previously. With each weapon, Link was able to carefully analyze his movements and patterns and come up with a series of moves to successfully hit him with. The opportunities were few and far in between for a man of Hachibei's skill and experience—but one good hit is often all that is needed to quickly end the fight. As soon as he felt Link had started gaining the advantage, he switched weapons (and thereby strategies) to force Link to start from square one again. Hachibei, meanwhile, could still have a general idea of Link's moves, as he generally used (and was now down to only) using his sword and shield combo.

Plus, the switching of weapons was also intended to give Link more experience against various weaponry to better prepare him for his hunt for Soul Edge.

However, that last attack came closest to defeat for Hachibei yet. Had Link had a longer sword or been a little faster, he very well might have won right then and there.

'Seems it's time to switch it up again,' he said to himself before he sheathed his blades and switched to a weapon Link hadn't seen before.

He had what looked to be a long ball-and-chain attached to a sickle that was held in his other hand. Link gritted his teeth in frustration as he got into a defensive position. He almost had him with that last attack, and he knew it! It was hard to find any opening in Hachibei's fighting styles, and he ALMOST succeeded in getting him with that last one. Now he has yet another new weapon to deal with.

"You're doing well, Link. Had your last attack been faster, you would have had me there. Now, let's see you handle my kusarigama."

He then started swinging the ball-and-chain above his head as the two circled each other slowly, looking to see who would strike first.

Link analyzed what he was looking at, trying to figure out how to handle this new and unusual weapon. It's times like these he wished he had Navi or Tatl to give him some insight on his opponent and what weaknesses he had. 'But I can do this, just like earlier. Just gain an understanding of the basics and the harder parts become much easier to figure out,' he said to himself, remembering the lessons Hachibei taught him.

Suddenly, Hachibei threw out the ball-and-chain at him in an arc, which Link managed to deflect it with his shield—albeit barely. Because Link was left-handed and Hachibei was right-handed, Link wasn't able to use his shield that well to deflect it. He swung at Link again, who barely deflected it again before seeing another swing aimed for his mid-section. This time, Link dove to the ground and rolled away to avoid the swing. But as soon as he got up, he was tripped up as Hachibei had swung again, this time at Link's feet.

The chain wrapped around his right ankle, and before he knew it, Hachibei gave a mighty pull and sent Link flying over twenty feet. He landed with a couple thuds before sliding on the ground, but unfortunately for him, the chain was still wrapped around his leg! Seeing this, Hachibei swung him around two more times, sending Link just as far with each throw before the chain was finally loosened due to the constant throwing. Link slowly got up to one knee, his body adorning new scratches and bruises from the attacks. He used his sword to help hold him up by sticking it in the ground and looked at Hachibei, who was preparing for another attack.

'Goddesses, this is a tough weapon to beat,' Link thought. 'He hasn't even used the sickle part yet, which is no doubt for anyone who came close to him. How can I catch him off guard with him swinging that weapon like that?' he asked himself as Hachibei kept swinging in preparation for his next strike.

Hachibei in turn was analyzing Link's reaction to his attacks. It was clear Link had never seen a weapon like this before, and it showed on his face which showed signs of confusion and concern. 'You've seen its basic functions, Link. Now let's see how you adapt this time,' he said to himself before swinging at Link again.

Link, though battered, was still able to move and dodge his attack. He then narrowly dodged and deflected a straight shot at him when an idea came to him.

'Hmm, maybe this will help.'

Hachibei, meanwhile, stood in a ready position while swinging his kusarigama after that last deflection. So far, the boy was still having trouble coming up with a strategy and continued to resorted to dodging and deflecting. He was starting to wonder if maybe Link found a weapon he couldn't figure out how to defeat. Suddenly, to Hachibei's surprise, Link...took the shield off his arm?

'What is he...? Ah, very clever.'

Link put the shield on his _left_ arm and the sword in his _right_.

'With the shield in his opposite yet dominant arm, he can better deflect the ball-and-chain. And given how surprisingly strong he is, he can alter its trajectory significantly more. How fortunate for him that the maker of that shield designed the handles so it could be used by either a left- OR right-handed person.' ( **A/N: I've seen pics of the back of the shield having a handle near both ends for left/right grip and in another Zelda story the handle could be flipped from one side of the shield to the other for left/right grip while keeping the strap in the middle. I'll let you decide which one it is.** )

"Very clever, Link. But let's see how well you can fight with your less dominant arm." He then gives another swing to Link. As expected, Link deflected it with more ease than before. Undeterred, Hachibei swung again. This time Link crouched down below it and started advancing. Seeing this, Hachibei slowly backed up while continuously swinging at Link at higher speeds and various angles, who ducked, dodged, and deflected his attacks all around while trying to get closer. It wasn't easy, as Hachibei would swing and spin around while backing up to keep his distance, rarely losing momentum in the kusarigama's swings.

Despite this, Link finally got close enough that Hachibei was forced to use his sickle for defense. This did not bother him in the slightest, as Link _still_ could not get in position to take advantage of the close range, much to his frustration.

While Link was getting closer, Hachibei had slowly been wrapping the chain around his arm, making the swings shorter and quicker to make, keeping it difficult for Link to maneuver himself the way he wants. The two spun around all over, as if in a deadly dance as their blades clashed and the ball-and-chain still swinging around until Link finally got close enough that the constant swinging had become ineffective, forcing Hachibei to fully coil it around his arm.

The two clashed blades multiple times, Link on the offensive trying to get past the sickle, but Hachibei merely parried them away. Hachibei then gave a horizontal slash and, seeing it coming, Link gave a hard swing with his sword, catching the _inside_ of the sickle just as he planned and tried to throw his sensei off balance. But Hachibei saw it coming.

Rather than match the swing head on, Hachibei quickly redirected it by spinning in a 360 degree turn while twisting and redirecting their weapons _upward_ , thereby throwing _Link_ off balance!

Acting on instinct, Link took a step back while turning in the same direction he had started, doing a 360 himself and gave a blind slash to Hachibei in anticipation of an attack. Hachibei did indeed strike—he even used the same horizontal slash he had just used earlier, with Link's sword catching the inside of the sickle once again. This time, however, Hachibei _did_ meet his momentum head on, catching Link off guard as he was not expecting that move and stopping his sword arm entirely while his body stumbled forward...and was left wide open to attack.

Hachibei continued his swing to his left, pulling Link's arm out and away from him before following with a powerful right roundhouse kick into the side of Link's skull. The combined (and near simultaneous) movements forced Link to drop his sword. Although not knocked down from the kick, it forced Link to spin around in a near 180 turn as he staggered off to the side, trying to gain some distance. But as soon as he looked back at Hachibei, he suddenly found the chain wrapping around his neck and tighten, choking him before suddenly feeling the ball-end of the chain smack him in the back of his skull. 'NOW I've got you, Link,' Hachibei said confidently to himself as he gave a pull.

'Ah, horse dung!' Link cursed to himself, slightly dizzied from the last attack but still managed to stay standing. He had tried to loosen the chain around his neck, only to feel a pull from Hachibei that caused him to stumble forward. He then tried to grab the part of the chain Hachibei held to loosen its pull, but he couldn't do so for more than a split second before Hachibei pulled and made him stumble again.

Link regained his footing a bit in a way that enabled him to sufficiently pull the chain in a tug-o-war with Hachibei. The two struggled for several seconds trying to overpower the other. But despite Link's strength, the long fight combined with his various injuries wore him down significantly, while Hachibei—though a bit exhausted himself and certainly not unscathed—was in much better shape, his injuries not nearly as severe. "You've fought very well, Link. It is not often I am pushed to my limits, but I have you now tightly in my grasp, and there is no escape. Do you yield?"

Link's mind was going a mile a minute. He tried to think of something, _anything_ that could get him out of this. He wasn't just going to give up! He never did before, even against all the beasts and monsters he faced up against who had him on the ropes, and he wasn't about to start now!

Hachibei, seeing Link hadn't surrendered yet, slowly started pulling the chain while stepping towards him. Link stumbled upon each pull but surprisingly kept his balance and stayed on his feet, but he could feel the choking effects with each pull. Still, Link had not given in. "Stubborn boy. Great courage can only take you so far. And if you're not careful, that can get you killed."

He gave another hard pull, making him stumble once again. Suddenly, just as he was about to berate Link again for his stubbornness in not giving up, his eyes widened in shock before he keeled over at what hit him in the stomach. Hard.

"OOOF!" he yelled out in pain from getting hit by...Link's shield!?

He looks up and his eyes widen again as suddenly...Link's sword was thrown at him!? He hastily deflects it in time with a backhanded swing of his sickle. However, this distraction proved costly—as Link was now suddenly right in his face!

He cried in pain again as Link gave him a hard, spearing tackle to the gut he had just hit earlier. He suddenly found himself rolling around on the ground with Link a couple times, both trying to overpower the other before finally coming to a halt…with Link on top!

'Just like with Tira,' Link thought offhandedly.

When Hachibei gathered his bearings, he suddenly stays still, eyes widened in shock before narrowing slightly.

Link had a kunai he still had on him poised at his throat, ready for any move he made.

'Incredible,' Hachibei thought to himself as he replayed what happened in his mind.

* * *

 _(Flashback in italics,_ present in normal text)

' _While being pulled by the chain, Link must have slowly started taking off his shield when his back was angled towards me...Then while he was stumbling during that last tug, he then threw his shield like a shuriken at me! Caught totally off guard, and coupled with the fact Link threw it with his dominant left arm, the force made me double over in pain and loosened my grip on the chain. Then..._ '

His eyes widened in realization...

' _His sword happened to be in between us while I was pulling him! I'm not sure if he intended that when he stumbled from that last kick or if it was just plain luck, but by the time I was hit by the shield, the sword was not two feet in front of him...Acting on instinct, the boy impressively had the presence of mind to remember he had a kunai blade on him...and must have felt he couldn't reach me in time if he had grabbed and then held onto his sword when he charged at me!..._

 _'And so instead, he quickly grabbed and FLIPPED his sword underhandedly towards me to surprise and distract me for just a split second longer so he could close the distance completely! It may not have been much, but that split second was just enough to get the job done. And in battles like this, a split second is sometimes all it takes to completely change the course of a battle..._

 _'AND by swinging the sickle the way I did to deflect his tossed sword, my body was left wide open to attack, which Link took full advantage of. He even went BELOW the chain when he tackled me so as to not get tangled up in it further from the rolling! Remarkable! And with a kunai in hand, he thus toppled me over, rolling us around a bit before he managed to pin me down with the kunai at my throat...'_

 _(Flashback end)_

* * *

'Incredible. Simply, incredible, _'_ he thought to himself in awe and wonder.

As he looked back into Link's eyes, though, he noticed the chain was still wrapped around Link's neck...and his own right arm. He tries to subtly tighten his grip and make the chain more taut to pull and escape, only for Link to press the kunai against his neck more when he saw what he was trying to do.

'Ah, very good. You saw the enemy look for a way out and you made sure to let it be known you saw what was happening.'

They stayed silent, neither making another move for another several tense moments. Finally, Hachibei gave a sigh and closed eyes before opening them again with a soft smile on his face.

"I surrender, Link."

Although defeated, he stated it with a sense of pride as well as a touch of admiration.

Upon hearing those words, Link lets out a sigh of relief as he put away the kunai. He then offers a hand up for Hachibei, who accepts it and pulls himself up before untying Link from the chain. Yet again, in that simple act, Link helped someone else out first before attending to his own needs—namely the chain around his neck.

"Most impressive, Link. That was an excellent strategy and most brilliantly executed," he stated as he helped remove the chain from Link's neck.

"Ar-arigato, sensei," Link replied somewhat shyly. He always was humble and rather bashful when praised by someone, Hachibei noticed, but nonetheless was still proud and accepting of it when given.

"I must say, you certainly caught me by surprise with those last moves...I'm proud of you, Link. You managed to find a way to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat and made the most of what little openings you could find and exploit them to its fullest," he said with pride while Link smiled and sheepishly rubbed the back of his head in response.

The two then stood straight before giving a solemn bow of respect towards each other, signaling the end of the fight between them. After they gathered the stray weapons and tools around the battlefield, Hachibei addressed Link once more.

"I have nothing more to teach you, Link. You have learned all you need to know to continue growing and becoming stronger. I have no doubt you will succeed in your quest to rid the threat of Soul Edge once and for all. Come, let us head home. Tonight Chie was making miso ramen soup, and I'm not going to let Riki try to hog it all to himself again," he joked with the two of them sharing a laugh as they walked side by side back to his home, a proud smile on both of their faces as they went.

* * *

 **A/N: I'm not sure how well I describe fight scenes, so I hope it reads somewhat decent. I found getting an action scene to feel exciting can be hard to do, especially in print. One must balance the description of the characters' actions while not being too detailed that it takes too long to explain or not having enough detail to make it feel too short. I probably edited the fight sequence a dozen times trying to get the tone and tempo right.**

 **Some of you might disagree with my argument with Link's swordsmanship not being as high as one might assume. Link's main strategy from what I've seen in the Zelda games is to find any sort of weakness in a person's or enemy's fighting style and exploit it with a particular tool or weapon. This I feel made him less skilled with a sword than one might think, with a considerably high reliance on inventory as opposed to pure skill as echoed by DeathBattle's Whiz and Boomstick in the episode Link vs Cloud Strife. (If you haven't seen DeathBattle!, you should totally watch that show on YouTube. It's freaking awesome!)**

 **In addition, just because one has a particular weakness doesn't mean the other can always take advantage of it. Knowing a weakness does no good unless one can maneuver one's self into position to exploit said weakness, which Link would have to figure out on his own.**

 **This latter mindset is what I tried to emulate in his fight against Hachibei and his kusarigama, which from what I can tell is effective at mid- and long-range but not so much at close range. Given his decades of training, Hachibei would understand his own weaknesses when using that weapon, and so I tried to make it so he constantly maneuvered himself to keep Link out of position from taking advantage of any weaknesses in his fighting style.**

 **Hope that made sense.**

 **Next time, Link will encounter a popular SC character. But I'll let you speculate on which one it might be :)**

 **For now, this is Agent Ghost-Writer 000 signing off.**


	4. Chapter 4 - Heartfelt Goodbyes

**So I was expecting Link to meet another SC character in this chapter before realizing the chapter may be too long to include that encounter, so I decided to upload TWO chapters, the second one definitely having Link encountering the SC character...hope that's not too inconvenient-AHH! (ducks from audience member about to punch)**

 **"He BETTER meet that SC character next chapter!" (shaking his fist at me)**

 **Don't worry! Don't worry! He will! I promise...**

 **"He BETTER," (audience member sits down and crosses arms)**

 **(Whew...) Ahem, like I said, Link will meet the SC character next chapter AND will have a fight scene in the process.**

 **"Good,"**

 **Ye-Yes...now then, just to recap on how the dialogue works:**

 **.**

This is a sentence. - Narration. No character speaking or thinking.

"This is a sentence." - Character speaking out loud.

'This is a sentence.' - Character speaking in his/her head.

This _is_ a sentence. - Emphasis placed on the italic word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

This IS a sentence. - Same as with the single italic, just a variation of expressing the emphasis.

 _This is a sentence. -_ All italics means the event is happening in a flashback of which I would give a quick note prior saying a flashback is occurring.

 _This_ is _a sentence_. - During a flashback, emphasis placed in the normal text word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

 **.**

 **I do not own The Legend of Zelda or Soul Calibur.**

* * *

 **Chapter 4 – Heartfelt Goodbyes**

Link stayed with Hachibei and his family for four more days while he recovered and Chie sewed his tunic back together from their latest spar. The scratches and bruises had all healed and the tunic looked good as new, much to Link's delight. Hachibei also gave him an extra cloak he had and some shuriken for his travels. The cloak has a hood with a single-buttoned front and a mask buttoned on the inside of the hood that can cover the lower face of the user if they so choose.

Hachibei instructed Link to head to the port city of Osaka and look for port number three, as that one typically has ships that sail to Europe. It was unknown as to when the next ship would be sailing to the West, and so it was advised for Link to leave as soon as he was able. He gave Link a map of the island of Honshu and instructions on how to best get there, and to help keep his family safe, Link agreed to be blindfolded and taken to a remote area and make his trip from there. This was so in case any enemies found him, he could not tell them exactly where Hachibei and his family are hiding.

But as he was walking where Hachibei was guiding him, he didn't have the usual bright, adventurous energy that he usually had inside him when he was traveling. Instead, he felt very...somber. Saddened. Downcast...Almost to the point of tears.

He wasn't sure if Hachibei noticed when taking him to the remote area while he was blindfolded, but Link's thoughts were still focused on his time staying with them...and the goodbyes thereafter.

When the time came to say goodbye, Link found it was very...hard to do, harder than he expected. And for a while, he wasn't exactly sure why. For two months he had lived with them, and in that time he had grown rather...close to them. The way they treated him and took care of him in that time, it was...he wasn't sure how to describe it. It just felt so...nice. Wonderful, really. It actually felt...normal.

He had never lived with anyone like that in his life. And when they were actually saying their goodbyes, Link had finished playing his ocarina for them one last time. But shortly before leaving, Riki, to his surprise went out and gave him a hug, saying he was like the older brother he never had. Link was stunned speechless, both at his actions and his words, unsure how to react. To add to it, while Riki was hugging him, Chie shortly walked up to them and gave him a joint hug with Riki, with Hachibei saying she thanked him for being such a positive influence on her son.

Link had remained frozen...unsure what to say or do when they did that. It all just felt so...surreal to him, that is when a thought suddenly came to him.

'Is this what...family feels like?' he asked himself.

He never knew his parents. He never saw them in person or even had a picture of them. He didn't even know he HAD parents to begin with until the Great Deku Tree Sprout informed him after saving Saria in the Forest Temple. He knew absolutely nothing of his father, and all he knew of his mother was how she entrusted him to the Great Deku Tree before she died from her wounds, a casualty of a the great war in Hyrule, and there was no mention of him ever having a brother or a sister.

It almost felt like his time with Hachibei, Chie and Riki showed him...what he had been missing growing up. Or rather...what had been _taken_ from him growing up. A picture of what life could have been like for him had things been...different. Normal. Not raised as a Kokiri normal, but...raised as a Hylian normal.

He felt like it was some of the happiest times of his life while living with them. And now...

He was leaving it all behind...again. That chance for a normal life that had long been denied him...

All he found he could do was give a small hug in return and whisper, "You're-You're welcome...And...thank you...for...everything," barely able to get anything out. His eyes threatened to shed tears, but he managed to hold them back at the time.

As he thought about it, he found it was the third time in his life he had said his goodbyes to someone, yet not wanting to leave...not knowing if he would ever see his friends...or whom he had started to view as family...again. Just like with Saria when he left the forest for the first time in his life...and again with all of his friends he had met in his journey in Hyrule who saw him off as he was transported to this world—Zelda, the Sages, Malon and Epona...

He never felt so sad in that moment. When he saw their heartbroken faces at seeing him leave, he almost stopped right then and there to not go on this quest to destroy Soul Edge. So he could stay with them...live a normal life like the Princess had intended...

He shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts. 'Don't go there, Link...don't try to make it harder on yourself going down memory lane...'

He then felt the blindfold being taken off, snapping him back to the present. He adjusted his eyes a bit to the light, the sun starting to rise over the horizon.

Hachibei saw Link shake his head a bit just before taking off his blindfold and couldn't help but ask about that. "Is everything alright, Link?"

"Uh, yeah...I'm fine," he said rather slowly and looked anywhere but him.

Hachibei "Hmmed" in reply. He looked rather sad, a very contrasted look to the upbeat look he usually had. "I can tell something is on your mind, Link. Tell me, what troubles you so?"

"No, I'm fine. Really...I just..." he trailed off, unable to finish.

Hachibei, however, had learned how to read people for a long time. That's how he knew of Toki's corruption and Li Long's genuine feelings for his daughter, Chie, giving him his blessing in the process. As such, he had a pretty good idea what Link was thinking.

"You do not wish to leave, do you?" He said it more as a statement than a question.

Link looked up at him in surprise. "I-No, no. I'm just...uh," he sputtered out, unable to come up with a reply before looking to the side, trying to come up with some kind of a response.

"I could tell by your reactions to Chie and Riki you did not want to leave. Even now you are having second thoughts on what you want to do next."

Link opened his mouth as if to speak but nothing came out. Finally he looked down, unable to look him in the eye. His sensei always seemed to have a habit of knowing what he was thinking, even if Link didn't say anything.

He then gave a deep sigh at what the boy was likely thinking. It was so cruel a hand that fate had given him in life, and he rarely seemed to catch a break. "I am sorry one so young as you has been forced to face so many burdens, Link. I cannot imagine how you must feel, never having any time to yourself or live the way you want to," he said softly. He actually had started growing fond of the boy himself, especially the way he bonded with his daughter and grandson. And he knew those bonds were likely saddening him, making it harder for him to go.

Link remained silent as his sensei hit the nail on the head once again...He never seemed to be able to live the way he wanted before he was called to another journey in some way. To be sure, he did like to go on adventures; they always brought an excitement in him. Being able to see and do new things, meet new people and so forth. It was always appealing to Link to do all those things.

But he almost never got any rest or time to himself in between his adventures before he was shortly called to another one for people who needed his help—generally several days at most, hours at worst.

And most of all, his constant adventuring prevented him from returning home to Hyrule.

And to his friends.

For over two years he and Epona had traveled away from Hyrule, and both had become very homesick in that time. He was thrilled at finally being able to return home and see everyone again after so long, only to be horrified at the devastation that had occurred at the hands of the sorcerer.

He eventually stopped him, but when it was all over, Link felt deep inside that _he_ was responsible for all the damage the sorcerer caused and the lives lost in his attack. That if he hadn't gone on his adventures, he would have been there to prevent the carnage and save all those lives.

Then as if to add insult to injury, shortly after stopping the sorcerer he is told of Soul Edge and the threat it posed to Hyrule, how it was in another world, and with one other very important detail...

Once he was sent to this other world, they had no way of sending him back.

As soon as he heard that, he wanted no part of it, much to the shock of the Princess and her handmaiden Impa who had informed him of the threat of Soul Edge. Whenever he wasn't there for Hyrule, the land suffered from his absence, he felt. It happened with Ganondorf in his seven year absence in the Sacred Realm, and it happened again with that sorcerer holding a piece of Soul Edge—and he wasn't about to leave Hyrule in danger like that ever again.

For the first time in her life, the Princess and bearer of the Triforce of Wisdom was at a loss at what to do. Sooner or later, this Soul Edge would eventually come to claim his missing piece if not dealt with before it became complete again, and who knows how powerful it would be then?

But the Hero and protector of Hyrule was choosing to stay, not wanting to leave his home in danger again. It was only thanks to a pep talk by Impa that convinced Link to go after Soul Edge. She first helped convince him that it wasn't his fault for not being there when the sorcerer attacked, stating if he had stayed in Hyrule then all of those people he helped in those other lands would still be suffering without his help, and that the world did not solely revolve around Hyrule.

That gave him pause when he thought about it, and actually made him feel a little better about it. Knowing he helped prevent people from suffering always helped him feel better on the inside. But it still bothered him that people still suffered in Hyrule when he was away, saddening his mood again.

When it came to Soul Edge, she argued it was best to go after it while it was still weakened and incomplete, before it had a chance to threaten Hyrule again. Link saw the logic in that, but it wasn't enough to convince him to go, not wanting to leave Hyrule behind. But the second and most important point she reasoned to Link was that if it was possible for a person or object to travel from that world to this world, then perhaps Link could find a way home in the exact same way.

That was the only thing that made Link even _consider_ taking on this mission.

But even so, the thought of possibly never seeing his home or his friends again was too much for him to bear. He didn't want to leave his home after only having just returned.

And neither did his friends, who were devastated by the news when they later heard from the Princess.

Upon hearing the news, they were told that Link had only nine more days to prepare for his journey, when the sun and stars were best aligned to send him to this new world. A journey he didn't want to take to begin with.

His friends all met together to discuss what to do and whether they felt Link should go after Soul Edge or not. No one wanted him to leave, and yet knew the danger Soul Edge posed to Hyrule should it one day attack, which Princess Zelda assured would one day occur if not dealt with now. It could be years, months, maybe even weeks from then.

Eventually it was decided they were willing to let Link go after Soul Edge, but they would make sure Link had the best nine days of his life before then. They gathered together for a surprise party for him and told him of their plans. Link was indeed surprised by them, not just by their actions but their willingness and support in going after Soul Edge, even though they knew they might never see him again. Touched by their actions, that helped give him the resolve and support he needed to go on this quest. And he too made sure to make every day last as long as he could with his friends. For one day, each friend would spend a whole day with him and make the most of each day.

But as one act of reprieve for Link by the goddesses, the Inverted Song of Time he learned in Termina also worked in Hyrule, allowing Link and his friends to make each day literally last even longer, as if they had triple the time to spend each day thanks to the song's time slowing properties.

Link could honestly say they were among the best days of his life...ever.

They shared stories, had fun, played games, Link even received some gifts from his friends such as a newly crafted Slingshot, child-sized Goron and Zora tunics, and the Boomerang from Jabu-Jabu among others as thanks for helping and saving them and their people.

And just like now...he had to leave them all behind. All for this stupid quest that for some reason only _he_ could do and no one else...Only _he_ had the skills and abilities that could let him survive the journey and stand a chance against the evil of this cursed sword...Only _he_ could bear the heavy burden on his shoulders...a burden that just seemed to get heavier and heavier as time went on.

Despite the last days spent with his friends, he hadn't truly gotten over leaving them...and he didn't want to leave here, either. After two months of living with people who more or less became a family to him, a concept he never knew or felt before, he's leaving them to go back on an adventure.

At the very least when he went on his adventures in the past, he had a companion with him to help him on his journey. A companion to join him in battle. A companion to share meals with. A companion to just...talk to in general. Navi, Tatl, and for the past two, nearly three years, Epona. Even though Epona couldn't reply back in human speech, she could still understand him and what Link was feeling, and vice versa. And here he would be going on alone...again. No companion, no fairy, no horse, nothing.

Just him.

He finally couldn't take it anymore as he started sobbing, much to the surprise of Hachibei. "Link?"

"You're right...I wish I didn't have to leave. I wish I could just stay here, and not have to worry about Soul Edge...and just live my life the way I want to," he stated despairingly as tears started to form.

"I wish...I could just go home..."

Hachibei may have been trained to control his emotions, but even his heart clenched in sadness as tears started falling on Link's face. He slowly knelt down, gently pulling Link into a grandfatherly hug, which Link returned while placing his chin on his sensei's shoulder.

"I know...it is cruel that such a heavy burden has been placed on a child so young..."

They stayed that way for a little while before Link spoke again. "Why do bad things always happen to good people?" Link asked him in defeated sadness.

"I wish I knew, Link. I wish I knew..." he stated, closing his eyes a bit as he tried to think of what he wanted to say. "I wish my family and I did not have to live in hiding, in fear of being hunted by those who lurk in the shadows. That at any given moment, one or all of us could end up dead." he replied.

Link hugged him a little tighter at that. He certainly didn't deserve to live like that, and all because of a corrupt and selfish leader who wanted more power.

"We all wish that the world, or any world for that matter, did not have to place such hardships on people's lives like they do. That people would be allowed to just live their lives the way they want to...But unfortunately, that is not for them to decide."

Hachibei pulled back a little as he continued. "As such, all we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us."

Link looked at him in silence for a bit, processing his sensei's words before reluctantly nodding while looking down, another tear falling from his face as his sensei continued. "I admit, the time generally given to you has been such that it takes a very strong will to endure it, no matter who you are. And it can wear on a person's soul over time, especially as one as young as yourself and what you've gone through." Link gave a small frown while looking down and to the side, but nodded in agreement. It _has_ been wearing down on him as of late. And the possibility of never seeing his friends again continued to linger in the back of his mind, often making him regret taking this mission even though he knew how important it was.

He suddenly looked back up when he felt his sensei place his arms on his shoulders. "But after everything I've seen in my life, you are by far the strongest person I have ever met, and I don't mean because you defeated me in battle earlier," he added with a small touch of humor in his voice. Link's mouth did actually curl into a brief smile at that and even breathed out a tiny chuckle. "And that's what I mean right there."

Link blinked in confusion at that as he looked at him. "Huh? Wh-What do you mean, sensei?"

He then gave a grandfatherly smile. "If anyone else had gone through the same things you have in life, they would have likely given up a long time ago—given in to the pain, both physical and emotional. But despite all the hardships you've experienced. All the sorrow and pain you've gone through, and all the emotional turmoil you have had inside you—Despite all of that, you still manage to smile," he said, his smile widening at the end. "And THAT is what makes you stronger than anyone else in the world. Yours and mine."

Link blinked at him in surprise at everything he said to him and found himself unable to speak. After a brief pause, Hachibei continued.

"I could not be prouder of you if you were my own son with how far you've come and everything you've done to help others, despite all the pain and hardships you've had to go through to help keep them safe. And I'm sure your friends and everyone back home are just as proud of you as I am."

For some reason Link found himself shaking upon hearing that, his eyes widened slightly. No one had ever said anything like that to him before...and he never felt himself shaking so much. But he wasn't shaking out of fear, but rather...pride?...Is that what he was feeling? He unconsciously swallowing a lump in his throat as his sensei continued.

"The time you have been able to spend with us, and with your friends I know has been...less than ideal, to say the least. But the memories shared with them, and with us, will last forever. As long as you treasure those memories—and hold them close to your heart," he added, placing a hand over Link's chest for emphasis, "your friends, myself, Chie, Riki, and everyone else whom you know and care about...will never truly be gone. They will always be right here with you," he said, giving Link's heart a couple taps, "helping you and guiding you along your journey. Even from afar."

He slowly looked between his sensei and his hand over his heart a couple times, still shaking a bit as he replayed what his sensei had said in his mind. He stayed silent, looking down slightly as he reflected on his sensei's words and reminisced about the past...and all the fun times he had with everyone.

He was breathing so silently Hachibei almost wasn't sure he was breathing at all. Finally, he heard Link let out a small sigh before suddenly but gently clutching his sensei's hand before looking back at him—with a small smile on his face. "I-I will..." Link said, full of emotion. "I'll-I'll never forget them...or you. I promise...I will never forget what I'm fighting for. WHOM I'm fighting for. My friends, you, and everyone else. I'll never forget," he finished, a soft yet determined look in his face.

"That's my boy." Hachibei said softly with a warm smile before giving him a brief hug. Link didn't know why, but that sense of pride suddenly skyrocketed in his heart when he said that, unconsciously swallowing another lump in his throat again before smiling much more broadly than before. Hachibei then slowly removed his hand from his chest before standing upright again. "Take care, Link. I have no doubt you will succeed in ridding the threat of Soul Edge once and for all."

Link looked at him with a bit of wonder at his confidence and assurance in him before smiling again and wiping his remaining tears. "Thank you, sensei. For...everything," he said softly, his eyes still misty. They then gave one last solemn bow towards each other before turning and parting ways. As Link continued walking, he briefly turned his head to look at his sensei, the closest thing he had to a father, one last time.

As if feeling Link gaze upon him one more time, Hachibei turned his head as he walked as well. He gave him a reassuring smile before slowly waving at Link.

Link's eyes and smile widened as he waved back, with more vigor. After about half a minute, he finally turned his head back ahead of him. He took a deep breath before looking down slightly while closing his eyes as he thought back to everything his sensei said to him before placing a hand over his heart. "I promise...I'll never forget," he said quietly to himself.

He then took another deep breath before slowly releasing it. And suddenly...he felt a lot better. MUCH better. If felt like...a major weight was suddenly lifted from his shoulders. He smiled at that feeling as he looked up into the sky. He then took another deep breath and released it as suddenly a more pleasant and more familiar feeling rushed through him.

That feeling of adventure calling to him. That feeling of exploring the unknown with wonder and excitement he hadn't felt in a long time. He finally couldn't take it anymore and he suddenly started running forward towards his destination, laughing a bit with a smile on his face as the sun continued rising over the horizon.

"Get ready new world! Prepare to meet the new and improved Hero of Time!"

* * *

 **A/N: So I wasn't expecting for the goodbyes to be as long as an entire chapter, but **I have a policy of letting the characters' backgrounds and personalities dictate the dialogue and flow of the story, and so that was my logic in having a longer goodbye.****

 **I felt Link living with a family for a couple months would have a much larger impact on him given his lack of a family growing up due to being raised amongst kids and no adults for ten years of his life. I mean, if you had no parents growing up and all of a sudden lived with a family that DID have parents for eight weeks, wouldn't that leave a more lasting impression and make it harder to say goodbye? Especially after the times Link had said goodbye and not knowing if he'd ever return or see his friends again.**

 **The video games don't fully give Link a personality as he almost never speaks, and so I'm trying to make Link more human and relatable as opposed to just a brave yet polite boy who always does the right thing or doing what the goddesses tell him without so much as a second thought.**

 **Seriously, if you were 10-13 years old and had to leave your home in order to save it from a great evil, wouldn't that feel overwhelming? Wouldn't you feel saddened and depressed at having to leave everyone you care about behind in order to do it? Would you even _want_ to be a hero anymore if that's what it took to help people?**

 **So that's the angle I've been going for in trying to express Link and his mindset in this story. Hope I'm at least _somewhat_ successful in that regard.**

 **Next time (as promised earlier), Link gets into a fight with another SC member. And again, I'll leave you to speculate who that will be :)**

 **This is Agent Ghost-Writer 000 (Double-O Zero) signing off.**


	5. Chapter 5 - The One-Man-Army

**So as promised, here is the chapter with Link encountering another SC character.**

 **(Dodges shuriken thrown at me)**

 **"About damn time, bub!"**

 **Eh-he-he...yeah. I'll try not to let that happen again. And if you haven't guessed who it is yet based on the chapter title, you must not know SC very well...**

 **So again to recap dialogue:**

 **.**

This is a sentence. - Narration. No character speaking or thinking.

"This is a sentence." - Character speaking out loud.

'This is a sentence.' - Character speaking in his/her head.

This _is_ a sentence. - Emphasis placed on the italic word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

This IS a sentence. - Same as with the single italic, just a variation of expressing the emphasis.

 _This is a sentence. -_ All italics means the event is happening in a flashback of which I would give a quick note prior saying a flashback is occurring.

 _This_ is _a sentence_. - During a flashback, emphasis placed in the normal text word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

 **.**

 **I do not own The Legend of Zelda or Soul Calibur.**

* * *

 **Chapter 5 - The One-Man-Army**

After parting with Hachibei, Link's path eventually took him through the woods yet again. He had been traveling for over ten hours, stopping only to eat and rest and made sure to stay out of sight from others. With the cloak Hachibei gave him, it obstructed with how he normally drew his sword since the cloak was over his equipment. As such, Link placed his sword belt around his waist. He also advised Link to cover his ears under his cap while traveling so as not to further arouse suspicion. Link frowned upon hearing that, but understood why.

Didn't mean he had to like it, though. It obstructed his hearing and was slightly uncomfortable on him.

Despite this, Link was filled with wonder at what to expect in this new world. Hachibei mentioned Europe was composed of well over a dozen different nations, each with its own people, language, culture, and so forth. It filled Link with a wide variety of questions: What did these different lands look like? What do the people look like in these lands? How big are these nations? What unique stuff do they have? What music do they have?

And what did this Honshu look like? He would be traveling through a few towns, Kyoto in particular, and they were bound to have some interesting things there. What did the cities here look like? Were they designed like that one mansion? Or was that mansion unique and the rest were like Hyrule Castle Town? Clocktown in Termina perhaps? And what things did they do there? So many questions filled his mind as he walked through the woods.

He soon reached a bit of a clearing with a river, maybe fifty feet wide and three to four feet deep, and more forest on the other side. Well this looked sort of familiar. Only he wasn't high above a cliff this time, and no woman in green with a deadly ring blade either. He thought it was a very pretty sight, reminding him a bit of Zora River back home. After admiring the view for a bit, he looked around to make sure no one was watching before he put on his Zora Tunic and took his cloak off to take a quick dip and clean himself up a bit.

Once he was done, he exited the river and put his cloak and Kokiri Tunic back on before taking a drink as well. It was strange how his Zora Tunic functioned, and Link still wasn't sure how it fully worked. Its unique magic functioned so that the water never seemed to enter the body of the wearer. The wearer could even speak while underwater, albeit with the water altering the sound. Link never felt water entering his lungs, and so water never shot out of him every time he resurfaced.

And yet he could drink liquids without problem when not underwater. 'Hmm, maybe that's how it works? When the tunic is in water, it creates a barrier so water doesn't enter me? But then...how do I breathe air? There's no air underwater...Do I suck air from the water? Gah, this is confusing! I don't think I'll ever figure it out.'

Shaking his head, he finished taking a drink before continuing to walk by the river. Ho looked for the bridge to cross that Hachibei had mentioned and soon spotted it several hundred feet away. The bridge was made of a mix of stone and wood with a small guardrail on both sides that went up to an adult's waist.

As he was approaching the bridge, a figure was already by the bridge on the opposite side of the river. He had stopped briefly to clean himself up and take a drink as well before continuing on his way. He was a well-built man, close to thirty in age. He had long black hair that was tied in a bushy ponytail with a few bangs in front of his face and had trimmed facial hair running all the way from the top to his chin, sporting a beard and moustache. He wore black pants with white at the bottoms that resembled flames and had toeless sandals. On his waist was a green pouch as well as a sword belt containing his trusty katana, and he had wrapped fighting bandages on his lower arms.

The most notable trait about him was he wore no shirt but had a large bandage adorning his left shoulder, which was then wrapped around his waist for support. A large and noticeable round scar poked out from his bandaged shoulder ( **A/N: Alternate outfit from SC II** ).

This was Heishiro Mitsurugi, the famed one-man-army of Japan. He seeks to be the greatest warrior out there and has the skills to do just that. Seven years ago, he saw how the shogun armies were significantly hiring less samurai in favor of the rifles introduced from the Europeans. He at first thought little of them, until he learned they obliterated the Takeda Cavalry at the Battle of Nagashino. Seeing how powerful these weapons were, this made him hunt for an even stronger weapon, which to him was none other than the enchanted blade of Soul Edge itself.

Hearing rumors it was said to be in Europe, he traveled all the way to and across the western continent but had no luck in finding it, and so he decided to return home. Upon returning, he would eventually challenge a rifleman to a duel to prove he didn't need Soul Edge to beat a rifle, and that the rifle was not as good as advertised. In front of a large audience, including the feudal lord no less, he suffered an embarrassing defeat. Underestimating the power and speed which the bullet traveled, he was shot in the shoulder, hence the scar and bandages. He eventually recovered, but his pride was wounded.

Three years after his first journey to find Soul Edge, he heard rumors that the blade had resurfaced in Europe, and so he traveled to Europe again to look for Soul Edge so he could beat the rifle. By then, he learned that the sword was in the hands of a figure known as the Azure Knight, or whom was also referred to as "Nightmare." But again, he could not find any trace of Soul Edge or Nightmare, and he again returned to Japan empty handed.

However, when he returned, he challenged the same rifleman to a duel for a second time, and this time he was successful in defeating him with a single strike of his katana. This led to him no longer having any desire in acquiring Soul Edge, believing he had all he needed to become the strongest.

He would later fight in numerous battles and wars for various armies, with the opposing sides often having hundreds of rifleman with them. Despite facing so many rifles and bullets at once, he never suffered a single bullet wound again as he either skillfully dodged or deflected the bullets with his sword or let it bounce off his armor. In fact, he consistently fought on the side that was outnumbered just so he could get a decent challenge. His ability to take out hundreds of soldiers in a single battle led to people calling him the One-Man-Army as a result.

But despite having regained his reputation, he still felt unsatisfied, missing that thrill of battle that tested his skills to the absolute limit. With the war battles no longer presenting a challenge, he now travels the lands looking for worthy opponents to test his skills against. The trouble is worthy opponents were hard to come by nowadays for him, but he did know of one.

That ninja woman Taki of the Fu-Ma clan who had interfered in his quest of finding Soul Edge multiple times in the past. He didn't know why she tried to prevent him from finding it—perhaps she wanted it for herself? Well, if so, she had to have had no luck in finding it either; otherwise, he would have heard rumors of her having it by now.

Regardless, she was the only warrior he faced that he had yet to defeat, fighting her to a draw each time they fought, and so he wanted to settle it once and for all. Unfortunately, she has lived up to her reputation as being hard to find as he hadn't found a single lead on her in months.

As he gathered his belongings and started to cross the bridge, he was surprised to see a hooded stranger at the other end, who looked equally surprised as him. He tilted his head as he stared at this stranger for a bit, sizing him up to see just what it was he was looking at. He could see a sword on his belt on his right-side, which immediately got his attention while also observing he was left-handed. He couldn't tell because of the hood, but he also looked to be young, maybe in his mid- to late-teens. As he looked at this hooded stranger, he raised an eyebrow in interest at what he was seeing.

He always had a sixth sense about him, and he felt this wasn't an ordinary stranger. He looked to actually be quite skilled despite his age and size.

'Let's see what we have here,' he said to himself as he started to cross the bridge.

The bridge itself was wide enough to easily accommodate two people to cross at once. Actually, probably a row of six or seven people side by side could cross at once. They soon found themselves starting to cross at the same time, both wary of what the other might do.

Link wasn't sure what to make of the man in front of him, but his muscled body, sword, and demeanor indicated he could be trouble if he wasn't careful. He looked to be one of those samurai Hachibei told him about, albeit without the armor. When he saw him crossing the bridge as well, ever polite, Link tried to walk closer to the guardrail to give him more room. However, the man in turn walked closer to Link's side while keeping his eyes forward, as if nothing was out of the ordinary. The more Link moved over, the more the man moved towards him.

Link internally frowned at that. It looked as though the man was intentionally going to bump shoulders with him. And that was never a good sign as Link was mentally preparing himself as to what this man was going to do.

Was he going to just brush shoulders to show how tough he was and leave it at that? Or was he going to fight? Man, Link hoped not. He didn't like to fight if he didn't have to, especially against someone he had no quarrel with. Link mentally braced himself for a possible fight nonetheless, analyzing the possibilities.

Will he swing at him before the pass? While they pass? After?

Will he even swing at all? Or will he stop to announce his intentions before swinging?

Link looked calm but stayed alert as they were now just six steps away from each other.

Now four steps.

Two steps…

One…

CHING! CHING-CHING! CHING! CHING! CHING-CHING! CHING! CHING!

The two suddenly found themselves locking their swords, pressing their swords against each other's in a violent struggle. In a span of barely three seconds, they had both drawn their swords and engaged in a series of follow-up strikes before finally locking swords and struggling for dominance.

Mitsurugi had a smirk on his face while the boy gritted his teeth beneath his mask trying to hold him off. Mitsurugi's eyes suddenly widened at what he was seeing. He knew the stranger was young when he first observed him, but upon closer inspection, he could see that beneath his mask he looked to only be about twelve, maybe thirteen years old!

And yet…he was able to deflect his iaijutsu along with the follow-up strikes. Granted, he didn't quite go as fast or as strong as he could have, but it was still impressive nonetheless. He gave another smirk before giving a large shove, pushing Link back a few feet.

The two stayed still for several moments as they stared at each other, Mitsurugi still having the smirk on his face. 'Just as I thought—despite his youth, this boy is actually quite skilled.'

Link stayed silent at what had transpired. He anticipated a fight based on the man's actions, but was surprised at how fast he drew his sword. Hachibei had taught him the art of the sword-draw, which he called iaijutsu, and trained him to use it to either attack or defend depending on the circumstances. He was sure that training saved his life here, albeit barely. But why was he fighting him in the first place? He didn't do anything to antagonize him; in fact he was trying to give him room!

But for whatever reason, he intentionally got closer to him and then made the move to strike, which Link parried at just the last split second before engaging in a series of strikes that came after. For some reason, Link felt he wouldn't be able to reason with this man. He looked like he was going to fight him even if he tried to reason with him. Hachibei had mentioned how prideful samurai can be when it came to fighting, and never took no for an answer when challenging someone. Well, after his training with Hachibei, he felt confident he could take him down without too much trouble and decided to wordlessly accept the challenge.

Mitsurugi, meanwhile, set aside his travel bags from his back and waist as he got back into a fighting stance, observing the boy further. He then noticed something else about him that got his attention. 'Hmm, this boy is rather interesting. Despite our differences in size and strength, his eyes show no fear or hesitation whatsoever. He might even be more skilled than I thought. What's this?'

He was surprised as the boy took off his cloak and revealed himself in full before reaching behind his back and pulled out a metal shield with an unknown design on it. This caused a slight frown to appear on his face. Samurai generally believe a shield is a sign of weakness, which is why they are never seen using any in battle. Armor, perhaps, but not a shield.

Then again, this boy _does_ look to be from a foreign land based on the green tunic he was wearing, as well as his sword being a double-edged blade instead of a single-edged katana as was common in this land. His outfit seemed somewhat similar to some of the European nations he visited, the cap in particular, and yet it was...different. Almost…unworldly.

What he was doing in this land was beyond him, but he didn't care. 'Foreigner or not, let's see what else he's made of. He might even be somewhat of a challenge,' he thought to himself in amused interest.

With that thought in mind, Mitsurugi upped his game as he charged forward and started swinging faster than before.

Link dodged the initial strike before having to face a flurry of quick slashes. Link blocked and parried each one before having to roll the side to avoid a horizontal strike. He was then forced to block three more strikes while turning to the side so they were both facing the railings. The last strike made him shortly lock swords with the samurai before the man gave a quick shove, followed by a horizontal slash to his legs, which Link narrowly avoided with a backflip onto the railing. He then jumped and cartwheeled along the railing to avoid another couple of swings, parried a couple more with his sword and shield before flipping off just in time to avoid another strike to his legs and landing back on the bridge...unfortunately on the same side he had started, and roughly ten to twelve feet from the bridge's edge.

Mitsurugi grunted in annoyance at having missed him. Slippery little warrior, he'll give him that.

He had no time to ponder further as he suddenly found _himself_ on the defensive as the boy responded with a series of quick strikes of his own! He fought back a smirk at that. This boy sure had guts charging at _him_ of all people.

But to his surprise, the boy was swinging at a much faster rate than before, and with more force behind them— _far_ more than he expected. So much so, he was forced backward…towards where they started!

He grunted as he blocked another blow. 'Impressive. There's no doubt about it. This boy is good...Hm, a little better than expected,' he said to himself as he was forced to sidestep a thrust to his abdomen. He countered with a horizontal slash which the boy deflected but then had to back up from and deflect the boy's slashes that followed, pushing him back another few steps as he was now five feet from the center of the bridge. The boy wasn't just using his sword, either.

'Grrr, that shield of his is getting to be quite bothersome. He's been able to deflect my strikes off of it in such a way so as to prevent me from making the follow up strikes I want. At the same time, he's also striking with the shield itself to further keep me from attacking and defending the way I want.'

His thoughts were interrupted when a follow-up slash he was expecting didn't come. Instead, after the boy gave a cross-body horizontal strike, he suddenly gave two hard spins the _other_ way! The delayed and unexpected move and the force behind it shoved his sword aside before he suddenly felt a strong kick to his gut, keeling him over slightly and backing up a couple steps before suddenly raising his sword to block another strike, briefly locking swords with him again.

'Grrr, you get one. _Everybody_ gets one,' he said to himself.

Not liking where this fight was going, Mitsurugi jumped back a bit to gain some distance as they got back into a fighting stance, right back to where they started previously. Suddenly, Mitsurugi altered his stance so that instead of facing forward with the sword facing upwards and at an angle towards his opponent, he turned his body to the side while holding his sword by his face while pointing it towards his opponent. He saw the curious look on the boy's face and inwardly smirked.

'Not bad so far, kid. Now let's see you handle _this_ ,' he said to himself.

He slowly advanced on the boy before increasing in speed as he got closer and gave a quick thrust, which the boy quickly deflected with his shield to the side while stepping back. He stepped back himself to dodge the boy's expected counter-thrust before following with an upward diagonal strike to bat his sword away. Using his momentum, he stepped forward and gave a hard kick straight into the boy's shield.

Caught off guard from the move, Link found himself stumbling back before having to dodge a downward diagonal strike from the man. He spun around with a strike and blocked the overhead strike that followed. He found himself stepping back from another flurry of strikes from the man who was now using more thrusting attacks than earlier. One of which managed to scrape his sword arm in between his elbow and wrist. A circular slash nipped his lower right leg. Neither were serious, but wasn't very encouraging to Link.

Deciding to change things up himself, Link slowly maneuvered himself to his right so they started angling towards the bridge railings. The man appeared to be aware of this, perhaps thinking he was trying to get past him in doing so. As such, the man started striking him in such a way so as to prevent him from getting past him. Just as he planned.

They were still directly in the center from the two railings as Link made his move. Link raised his shield to again block another kick and stumbled back towards the railing. He then sees the man quickly rush towards him with another thrust. But that was part of his plan.

As soon as the man kicked his shield again, Link headed towards the railing while subtly angling himself as if trying to get around the man. He fell for the trick as he gave a low but hard thrust to cut Link off, his sword scraping against the stone railing as a result. However, with his angle and momentum, Link took one big step on the railing that was just tall enough that it allowed Link to jump off the side of it...and give a powerful spin kick right into the man's face!

Caught off guard, Mitsurugi stumbled back a couple steps before he was forced to block a series of follow up strikes from the boy. 'Kuso! Clever move, boy. Baiting me as if you were trying to get past me. Very clever indeed. Now it's my turn,' he thought to himself as jumped back a bit. He was now standing directly in the center of the bridge as got back into his side stance, observing the boy go back into his usual stance.

Seeing this, he quickly charged forward as if he was going to lead with a straight thrust. Then at the last second he changed it to instead make a large circular swing from below, which the boy deflected with his shield. He then spun and sidestepped to his left to avoid the anticipated counter-thrust and followed with another circular strike after he completed his spin, forcing the boy's shield to the side.

He quickly followed with a thrust of his own, forcing the boy to now take a sidestep back. He wasn't quite fast enough as it nipped the boy's side about a few inches below his shoulder. He inwardly smirked at that, until he felt a hit to his arms that raised them upward slightly. All of a sudden, he found himself stumbling backwards across the bridge as the boy was pushing him hard into his stomach...with his shield?!

Link may have gotten scratched from that last attack, but in the process he saw an opening when the man slightly overextended himself with that last thrust and charged forward, shield first into his gut. He pushed him as hard as he could across the bridge, hoping maybe in the off-chance that by reaching the other side the man would think their "contest" to get to the other side of the bridge was over. But as he pushed him, he knew he wouldn't be able to make it before the man eventually got free. Just before he felt the man try to alter their momentum, Link gave him a mighty push and sent him backwards roughly ten to twelve feet. He rolled backwards once in a somersault before quickly landing on his feet and finally grounding to a stop with his hands and sword.

Link quickly looked at his wound before gritting his teeth in frustration. 'Darn it! And Chie had just sewn it back together, too! And all this just to cross a bridge? If I had known it would have been this much trouble, I would have just swum across,' he thought sarcastically.

Mitsurugi, however, had a rather angry look on his face at that last maneuver by the boy. He hadn't been going all out on the boy, not wanting to accidentally kill him—merely test him out of amusement before defeating him and moving on—but those last couple moves got him worked up. 'Alright. No more holding back, kid. Let me show you what a REAL warrior can do!' he thought to himself as he charged forward, sword-first.

Link looked back up in time to see the man quickly close the distance between them and had to jump back to avoid his first swing before blocking the next. Now the man was going MUCH faster than before. Link had to slowly backpedal to continue blocking his strikes but found himself struggling to keep up. Suddenly, he had to block an overhead strike that he barely saw coming, holding up both his sword and shield to block it. The man's strength quickly overpowered Link as he was slightly shoved back before immediately feeling an elbow hit him underneath his chin, quickly followed by a strong kick to his chest, backing him up more though he stayed on his feet. Unable to maneuver, Link was on the defensive again as the man kept attacking aggressively.

'Goddesses! This guy is much harder than I thought!' Link thought to himself as he was again forced to briefly lock swords with him before receiving another large push backward followed by yet another hard kick, this one to the stomach that sent him back several feet and knocking him down on his front.

'Geez, not only are his sword swings hard—so are his kicks! I can't even get a chance to use my other weaponry!' he thought as he quickly looked up to see him coming again.

Mitsurugi quickly charged towards the boy again before he could get in position, but as soon as he got within a couple feet, he suddenly gave a mighty jump of over ten feet into the air while swinging his sword in two upward circular motions.

Link was surprised by the maneuver, barely having time to raise his shield to block the first strike which was quickly followed by the second that was also blocked with his sword but left Link out of position. By this time, the man was descending so as to land behind Link, and while he was descending, he gave a hard vertical slice intended to cut the boy in two ( **A/N: Mitsurugi's standard throw move from SC II** ).

Link narrowly avoided that scenario, quickly jerking back at the last second but he still received a bloody slash across his left cheek from the last strike, a split second too late in trying to duck to the side. It wasn't fatal, but it could cause problems if not treated soon. He suddenly stumbled forward after receiving yet another hard kick to his back, barely managing to stay on his feet.

Mitsurugi smirked after that kick. He had to admit this was actually a pretty good fight. Much better than he was expecting. The kid lasted far longer than he thought possible and even had to start using his deadliest skills to finally get his sword to connect like that. That last attack in particular was among his deadliest, and even though he wasn't unscathed, the boy successfully managed to survive it. In fact, he was the FIRST to survive it, a feat impressive in and of itself.

'And that was actually intended to kill. Perhaps a bit overboard to use on one so young, and yet...I had a feeling he could potentially survive it. And as it turned out, my instincts were right once again.

'But as entertaining as this has been, the boy is still out of his league. At least...for now. Give him a few more years, and he very well might be a worthy challenge some day,' he thought with a small grin at the end. 'But for now, it's time to end this. I have bigger prey to hunt.'

With his opponent reeling and out of position again after that last kick, he quickly charged forward, ready to finish this off. But just as he raised his arms to do a diagonal downward slash...

'NOW!' Link shouted to himself as he suddenly moved forward while spinning to his left and rammed the pommel of his sword into the man's stomach as he tried to strike, knocking the wind out of him and hunched him over. He hit him with so much force that he was actually LIFTED off the ground by over a foot!

Quickly taking advantage, Link grabbed the man's right arm while he was distracted, then somersaulted OVER it while still gripping his arm. The force of Link landing on the ground abruptly jerked the arm down, causing the man to shout out a quick "AH!" before he was suddenly bashed in the back of the skull by a left sword-fisted haymaker from Link ( **A/N: Link's Arm Throw from SC II** ). The force of the impact was so hard it launched him completely off his feet!

Completely surprised by the maneuvers and unable to stop himself, he suddenly found himself flying headfirst straight into the stone guardrail! Mercifully, he connected with it just under the edge of the rail so it didn't tear open his skull. The force of impact was so hard chunks of stone were broken and released, a few falling on the back of his head after he landed. His body then slowly slid against the guardrail shortly afterwards, before coming to a complete stop.

Link stood still after his last attack, breathing a little heavily after all the fighting. 'Is it over? Please be over,' he thought to himself as he saw the man stir.

Mitsurugi moaned in pain. He tried to get up, pushing his hands against the bridge to do so, but with one more grunt, he suddenly went limp and fell unconscious.

Link cautiously approached, ready for any sign of attack. He gave a light shove to his body with his foot. No response.

He was indeed knocked out.

Grateful that it was over, he gave a short sigh of relief before slowly rolling him over onto his back. He looked at him for a bit, taking note of the scar on his shoulder as well as others he could see on his body. This guy was definitely tough. He wasn't even sure if this man was going all out on him or not. And if he wasn't…Link didn't even want to think about that.

Groaning as he clutched his bloodied cheek, Link pulled out his medicine and aid kit before tending to his wound. He may have somewhat fast healing, but that will still sting for at least the next day or two. He _could_ also use one of his healing potions, as it would only take a gulp or two to heal them all up, but he wanted to save them for emergency situations only. After applying the stinging, rubbing alcohol, he applied some bandages to stop the bleeding on his cheek.

'Wonder if that will leave a scar? Oh well, wouldn't be the first one,' he thought ruefully.

After bandaging his minor wounds, he then looked at the man as he contemplated what to do with him. It was rather unsettling for him to just up and attack him like that, not entirely used to the cultures in this land. He was always used to someone speaking to him before challenging him as they generally gave a reason to fight him, but Hachibei-sensei mentioned how many samurai tend to not issue a challenge with words and instead with action. Even things as simple as a shoulder brush or even a grunt of contempt can start a fight. They typically cannot be reasoned with to not fight—once they challenge someone, they never stop until one of them is defeated. Period. That was the way of the samurai.

Link looked at him a bit more before breathing out a deep sigh. Even though he struck first and didn't even give a reason for attacking, he wasn't just going to leave him like that. That just wasn't who he was—even if sometimes it came back to bite him. 'Like that girl in green,' he thought.

Despite that, it just felt…right to him to help people—even if there were...differences or conflicts between them. And for him that's all that mattered.

With that in mind, he started tending to the man's wounds. Seeing the man's traveling bag with extra clothes, he gently rested his head underneath it. He seemed to have just a bruise on the back of his skull, nothing broken. He had a small gash on his forehead with a little blood coming out of it, but surprisingly did not have a fractured skull, or at least not from what Link could see. It could be just slightly cracked on the inside, but even so, that just showed how strong this guy was physically.

Applying a bandage on his forehead, Link nodded approvingly. He idly noticed a set of armor with the bag he didn't see earlier. It looked similar to those guards he saw back at that mansion, confirming he was definitely a samurai.

'And a darn good one, too,' Link added. Apparently, Link caught him just before he put it on and he felt he didn't need to wear it to beat him? Either way, Link then stood up to make sure everything was in order before gathering his cloak and putting it back on. As per local custom, he then bowed in respect to his opponent.

"Good fight, samurai-san. I wonder if we'll see each other again?" He paused a bit as he looked him before a nervous look appeared on his face. "Hopefully, later rather than sooner," he added with a nervous chuckle.

Just as he was about to turn and leave, something caught his eye in the green pouch the man had. An object was sticking out slightly from it—a very _familiar_ and _glowing_ object.

'A shard of Soul Edge!'

What was this guy doing with a shard of Soul Edge? And why didn't he use it against him? Use its power to try to overwhelm him?

'Maybe he thought he didn't need it to beat me?'

Well, either way he was glad he didn't, but now Link wasn't quite sure what to do. Did he take it from him so he couldn't use it on others? Or him, for that matter? But then...that would make him look like a thief. The Gerudo may have called him a fellow thief, but he didn't steal from people...except for that one time he helped Kafei steal a mask from Sakon the Thief.

'Well, he stole it first, I just helped get it back to its rightful owner,' Link reasoned to himself. Then as he thought about, did all those times he took items from those dungeons count as being a thief?

'Well...Ganondorf had taken over the temples and placed curses on others, filling them with monsters and such...but that didn't mean he actually stole them...did he?'

Link shook his head. That wasn't getting him anywhere. Another, and more important issue, was it wouldn't surprise him if he went after Link for taking it from him. And sooner or later, he _would_ find out it was stolen.

'Then again, based on what Hachibei said about samurai, he might come after me anyway to settle the score after being defeated.'

Link frowned at that. It seemed he was—how did that expression go? Ah yes. Damned if you do, damned if you don't, or so he's heard. Sighing again, he decides to take it and quickly placed it in the sealed box with the other shard. "And now that makes two pieces. Well...technically three," he said as he briefly looked at his sword forged from the purified shard of Soul Edge. "Hope you won't hold it against me, Samurai-san," he said before giving another bow.

His eyes suddenly widened as he quickly looked up and turned around towards the sky, looking all round. 'Strange, I thought I heard something.'

He concentrated a bit more, trying to see if he could see or hear anything but found nothing. "Hm, must have been my imagination," he said before (finally) heading off towards his destination.

* * *

From hundreds of feet away, a figure hovered in the air. He had armored shoulders and wore a chainmail with white and gold trimmings that fell down like a sash to his ankles on both the front and back. His legs were covered in similar white with gold trimmings and wore combat boots with the same style. A green belt surrounded his waist and he had a noticeably large gold medallion hanging down to his chest. A white hood covered the top of his entirely bald head, and he also had white fingerless gloves with black and gold straps and a gold symbol on the back of the gloves. In his right hand was a large scythe that was just as tall as he was and also followed the same white with gold touches motif as its wielder. Finally, he had one eye that was normal in appearance while the other looked as if it was entirely yellow.

"So, _this_ is the source of the anomaly I sensed earlier. Interesting," he said to himself out loud. He had sensed a dimensional rift roughly two months ago, but he was far away in Europe at the time and was busy putting his plans into action. He since came to Japan to identify what it was, but had no luck for a while until he happened to sense a some shards of Soul Edge nearby. And when he saw the boy in green, he knew he had found the source. He could feel the residual energy coming from the boy that was the same as the dimensional rift he sensed.

He watched with interest as he saw the boy and the samurai face each other, and he had to admit it was rather entertaining. The boy was quite skilled for his age, but he then raised an eyebrow in surprise when the boy was actually victorious with those last set of moves. He inspected the boy further as he saw him tend to his wounds and noticed how he tended to the wounds of his opponent as well. Interesting. He seemed to show compassion even to his enemies. His eyes suddenly widened in surprise at something else he sensed from the boy.

'A shard of Soul Calibur? Forged into his sword!?'

He quickly hid from sight when he saw the boy look up in his direction, as if sensing he was being watched, but the boy gave no indication he knew he was actually there.

As the boy left, the man known as Zasalamel reappeared but with several questions filling his mind. Where on earth did he get that sword? Did he find it somewhere? Or was it given to him? And who forged that sword to begin with? Did he give whomever a shard of Soul Calibur to forge it with or did someone else and he later got a hold of it?

He shook his head from all these questions. "However he got his sword, it doesn't matter. In fact, all the better..." he said slowly as he moved his other hand to his chin, rubbing a finger across his lips as he processed this new information. A sinister grin slowly appeared on his face as the plans started forming in his head. "Hmm, this might work out better than I expected...Yes, I think this boy will work perfectly," he said, grinning with a sinister chuckle before disappearing in a flash.

* * *

Roughly half an hour later, Mitsurugi finally woke up, groaning a bit as his head and midsection throbbed in pain. As it started to subside, he slowly sat up and looked around him, trying to remember what happened.

"Ugh, where-"

He then stopped as he felt the bandage that had been applied to his forehead that he was sure wasn't there before. 'I didn't put this on, so where did-'

Suddenly, everything came back to him. The bridge, the boy in green, the fight with the boy...

"Kuso!" he cried before groaning again and clutched his head. He was sure he had a concussion from the blow, and he could still feel the hit to his gut.

Mitsurugi. The one-man-army and most feared samurai in the land, defeated by a child. A child! The thought caused him to smash his fist hard into the bridge, causing it to crack from the impact before quickly standing up in before suddenly he remembered one other important detail.

The boy tended to his wounds.

He didn't need his sympathy! If he died right then and there, so be it! It is considered honorable to die in battle, which is how a samurai is to go out—fighting to the bitter end in a one-on-one duel. Those who live by the sword, die by the sword, and a samurai follows that code with pride and honor!

And to show him sympathy the way he did was most dishonorable to a samurai such as him! To him, it was telling the fallen opponent he was weak and not a threat to him. And if there was one thing that didn't describe Mitsurugi, it was weak!

"Grrrrrrr-RAHHHH!" he yelled as he stood up, unable to contain his rage. "How DARE you dishonor me, child! I will not stand for such impudent and disrespectful behavior! DO YOU HEAR ME!?"

He started pacing back and forth on the bridge while gathering his belongings and sheathing his sword, still fuming to himself over everything that had transpired. "Me. Defeated by a child! A CHILD! Hundreds of soldiers had fallen before me in a single battle with swords and rifles alike, and in one fell swoop, I fall before a child barely reaching puberty!?"

He was about to lash out in fury once more before he stopped himself in mid-step, taking a deep breath to calm down.

"Focus, Mitsurugi. Focus...Remember what happened the last time you let your emotions get the better of you. You ended up taking a bullet to the shoulder due to your overconfidence, and in front of the crowd and feudal lord, no less."

He took a few more deep breaths as he closed his eyes. It had been a long time since he felt this way. Twice now, he had underestimated someone, and twice he had paid the price for it. He continued his meditative breathing as he slowly started to clear his mind.

He thought back to his duel with the boy, remembering every detail from the first swings down to the last. As he thought back in his mind everything he could remember, there was one more important observation he had made about the boy—he looked to be a foreigner, possibly from Europe.

That actually gave Mitsurugi pause as he reflected on that. In his travels for Soul Edge in Europe years back, he received quite a bit of attention when he fought certain warriors—and noblemen—of the local nations. He still behaved and fought as if he was still in Japan, and he found out the hard way they did not follow the same customs and ideals as he. He challenged and fought them as he normally did, and as a result, they attempted to arrest him for assaulting an officer and civilians, in particular the noblemen. The only reason he was not taken into custody for his actions was that they were unable to do so, as he fought off six officers at once with almost no effort before escaping.

That led him to avoid entering any major civilization he could while traveling abroad to avoid such incidents again. He was fortunate the wounds he gave them were not fatal or he may have had nationwide manhunts against him.

'And chances are, this boy was just following _his_ local customs when he tended to my wounds,' he reasoned.

That thought actually calmed him down considerably to the point his hostility faded towards the boy because of that. In fact, as he thought about it more…he could feel himself slowly starting to respect this child. And anyone who earns the respect of Heishiro Mitsurugi is an accomplishment in and of itself.

He knew he was no ordinary stranger when he first saw him, and this was proven true as they continued to fight, only for Mitsurugi to let his guard down at the very end. He shook his head at that. 'All it takes is one mistake to completely turn the tide of a battle. And this boy did just that, defeating me and knocking me out in the process.'

It was such a strange scenario to him as it had almost never occurred before. To be on the losing end of a duel.

It was so inconceivable. So…unheard of. So…

Invigorating!

A wave of adrenaline suddenly coursed through his veins as he was filled with something he had not felt in a long time.

That fire. That spark that ignited his warrior heart. That anticipation of an intense battle. That rush of adrenaline that fueled his soul at the thought of finally facing a worthy challenge. Not since the Azure Nightmare had he felt this fire!

It was strange, being excited to fight a boy not even half his age. But on the battlefield, age didn't matter as the boy had proven earlier. Only their skills and abilities to fight. In addition, he felt that neither of them had truly gone all out in that battle, and chances are the boy had even _more_ tricks up his sleeve just like he did…and he bet that it would take all he had to defeat him.

That thought alone excited him even more!

A leaf fluttering in the wind flew right in front of him...before it was suddenly slice in two by his sword via iaijutsu. "You caught me by surprise, boy. You took full advantage of my overconfidence and had me pay the price. Just like a true warrior."

He slowly sheathed his sword before he started in the direction where he came from. The direction the boy was going. "I underestimated you this time. Next time, I will not hold back. You hear me!? We WILL fight again. And next time, it will be a battle for the ages!" he shouted towards the sky.

So wrapped up in his thoughts of fighting the boy again, he was completely oblivious of his missing shard of Soul Edge, caring only for the anticipated rematch with the boy.

* * *

 **A/N: Uh, oh. Now the scheming Zasalamel has his eyes on Link. Just what does he plan to do with him? Well, you'll just have to keep reading to find out!**

 **I hope the battle was satisfactory. ** **Before I even started this story, I was going to have Link defeat Mitsurugi who would then pursue him for a rematch.******

 **Had Link been older, I think Mitsurugi would have been more inclined to not hold back at all, and so I tried to make it so he underestimated Link a little because of his age while still making it feel like it was a tough fight for Link.**

 **That will be a recurring theme, with many characters initially underestimating him because of his age (physical, even if not necessarily mental from his seven year jump into the future in OOT).**

 **As I thought about it, I wonder if I introduced Tira and Mitsurugi out of order...I try to stay true to the canon as much as possible and I think it would have made more sense for Tira to be introduced after the time skip with Hachibei. Maybe I'll edit these first five chapters someday to reflect that, but everything would be caught up by this chapter regardless.**

 **In the mean time, next chapter will have Link meeting yet another SC character as he continues towards Osaka. Who will it be? Find out next time!**

 **For now, this is Agent Ghost-Writer 000 signing off.**


	6. Chapter 6 - Enter the Snow Flower

**.**

This is a sentence. - Narration. No character speaking or thinking.

"This is a sentence." - Character speaking out loud.

'This is a sentence.' - Character speaking in his/her head.

This _is_ a sentence. - Emphasis placed on the italic word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

This IS a sentence. - Same as with the single italic, just a variation of expressing the emphasis.

 _This is a sentence. -_ All italics means the event is happening in a flashback of which I would give a quick note prior saying a flashback is occurring.

 _This_ is _a sentence_. - During a flashback, emphasis placed in the normal text word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

 **.**

 **Just as an FYI, here is a translation of some Japanese words in this chapter:**

 **"Gaijin" - Foreigner or non-Japanese**

 **"Nani" - What**

 **"Daimyo" - Feudal Lord**

 ** **"Hai" - Yes****

 **"Oyabun" - Boss**

 **"Baka" - Idiot or moron. Or if you prefer, dumbass.**

 **"Kitsune" - Fox**

 **"Mon" - This was the name of their currency in the late 16th Century.**

 **With that, I do not own The Legend of Zelda or Soul Calibur.**

 **On to the story!**

* * *

 **Chapter 6 – Enter the Snow Flower**

Link had been traveling south for over a day now since his battle with that samurai. It was only after he left him that he realized he still didn't know the man's name. By now, his wound had stopped bleeding, though he still kept it bandaged. Finally just before sunset, he reached the city of Otsu, a port city roughly seven to eight miles east of Kyoto that rested by the large lake known as Lake Biwa.

From afar, he could see various people going to and from the harbor, loading and unloading various goods from the different ships anchored there. There actually seemed to be quite a lot of ships, as well as a lot of guards or soldiers of some kind. In the distance he also saw what appeared to be a castle of some kind with many guards protecting it.

'Maybe a princess lives there,' he chuckled to himself.

A rumbling in the sky got his attention as storm clouds started brewing. Great. He had hoped he could reach Kyoto before nightfall, but the storm had other plans. He could have gone straight to Kyoto from the north, but Hachibei advised him that a recent skirmish had them place more guards on the northern border and so he should instead head slightly southeast to Otsu and then approach Kyoto from the east.

Ignoring the looks of the occasional passerby, he looked around for an inn while trying not to bump into anyone. He had been searching for ten minutes, but wasn't having much luck. It didn't help that it looked like it would start pouring any second. 'Hmm, maybe I'll need to ask someone for help after all,' he thought to himself. He hoped to avoid doing so and bring less attention to himself, but at this point he felt like he was running out of options.

Not entirely sure where he was going, he soon found himself in a more sparsely crowded area that looked somewhat rundown. As he turned another corner, he noticed a very pretty blonde woman walking along the street with an umbrella in her hand. He had seen a good number of people walking around, but this one in particular caught his attention.

Or rather, the four men he could see were watching and following this woman. He saw what appeared to be the leader pointing to her while gesturing towards three others he assumed were his henchmen. Behavior like that usually meant one thing.

Trouble.

'Not on my watch.' With that thought in mind, Link slowly altered his course to follow them.

"The hunters have become the hunted...Hehe, I always wanted to say that."

* * *

The woman, although seemingly oblivious to her surroundings, was fully aware of the men following her and what they were likely planning. It certainly wasn't the first time she had been in this situation, but she pretended she didn't notice as they slowly started closing in. 'Such simple-minded fools, thinking because I am a woman I cannot defend myself.'

She headed to a remote part of town as soon as she saw they were following her, casually strolling along before suddenly coming to a stop. The men were slightly surprised at the move but moved in closer nonetheless as she turned in their direction.

"Hey there, you lost beautiful?" one said with a non-too-reassuring smile.

"Yeah. If so, _we_ can help with directions."

"We can show you all the good parts of town. We can all have a good time, right boys?"

"Yeah. A REAL good time," they all said while chuckling a bit as they looked at each other.

Despite their actions (and comments), she gave a seductive smile in response. "My, how thoughtful, gentlemen. And what did you have in mind?" she stated while twirling her umbrella a bit in an enticing way, getting the reactions she expected.

"Oh, we can show you. And I'm sure you can show _us_ something as well," he states while glancing at her considerably large bust. "Come on, let's see what you got, gaijin," he stated as he drew out a kodachi to intimidate her. He slowly advanced towards her, blade first as he moved forward. He then slowly extended his other arm towards her chest.

"Hehe. My, such very large br-YAAAAH!"

The man stepped back and dropped his sword as he suddenly found himself with a large gash across his midsection that was now spurting blood. He gripped his heavily bleeding wound before looking up in surprise to see the woman...with a sword in her hand?!

'Where did she get that sword!?' he exclaimed to himself. He then saw the umbrella was now missing the handle, which matched that of the sword. 'Son of a…she had an umbrella sword?!'

Seeing their leader injured, the others quickly drew their own weapons. One had another kodachi, only in his left hand. Another had a nunchaku with bladed ends. And the fourth had a pair of sais. They twirled and swung their weapons a couple times in the air, trying to intimidate her.

"Come at me then, boys," she stated, unintimidated and unimpressed with their weapons or their numbers.

As if given an unspoken command, the three charged at her at once. The man with the nunchaku reached her first, swinging at her four times, only to miss each time as she dodged them all with ease and received a heavy slash across his midsection for his trouble, collapsing in a heap and dropping his weapon.

She immediately sheathed her blade after that, much to the sai wielder's confusion who was moving in from behind. He continued forward to stab her regardless, thinking he had her by surprise—only to grunt in frustration as she ducked to the side as well. He gave several more quick swings, making her step back a bit, but she expertly dodged those too until he overextended himself, getting sliced in the stomach via iaijutsu for his mistake followed by a stab to the chest, killing him.

She suddenly had to dodge the fourth man coming from the side with the other kodachi while blocking the leader's strike immediately after, who had since picked up his sword again. She spun around after blocking the strike, backing up to gain some space while they advanced. She expertly blocked and parried the two trying to double-team her to no success. The two then tried to swing at her at once with one going high and the other low. In a show of grace and agility, she swiftly dodged, parried, and weaved her way through their attacks, much to the frustration of the two who were yelling at her to hold still.

Then in a move that surprised them both, as they were both swinging, she stepped in between them while grabbing the sword wrist of the left-handed man while at the same time parrying a swing made by the other with her sword. Taking advantage of his surprise, she used her momentum to sharply pull the first man's arm behind him, causing him to yelp in pain before getting stabbed from behind and dropping his weapon.

Before he fell, she quickly kicked him forwards off her sword and straight into the gang leader, who was knocked off balance from the surprise move. Just as he got his now dead henchman off of him, he looked up just in time to receive a sword...straight through his throat.

"Having a good time, now?" she stated softly with a hardened look in her eyes. She pulled her blade out and watched in disdain as the man fell dead before her. In a span of barely half a minute, four men were taken out just like that. She surveyed the scene, seeing the four bodies surrounding her. With the threats removed, she calmly pulled out a handkerchief and wiped the blood from her blade before sheathing it and opening her umbrella again.

"Now, time to find that inn," she said to herself as she walked back where she came from, casually strolling as if nothing had happened and no storm was brewing or thunder roaring in the air.

"DIE GAIJIN!"

"Nani!?" She turned around in surprise to see one of the men about to slice her in two...not three feet from her! How did he manage to sneak up on her!? Just as quickly as she noticed him, he was just as suddenly knocked off course as a curved object had suddenly bashed him in the side of the head and made him stumble off to the side. He turned to try to see what or who hit him, only to gasp in pain from a sword thrusted into his chest before going limp, dead.

The woman looked down at the now dead body of the man who caught her by surprise, a bit unsettled by what just happened. She saw it was the man who had the nunchaku, who had since picked up his fallen friend's kodachi to kill her with.

'Apparently, he wasn't as dead as I thought,' she said to herself as the rain started to come down. She then re-wiped her blade and sheathed it before putting her umbrella back over her head again.

'That was far too close for comfort. I must be slipping in my training. But who-?'

She turned to where she saw the curved object came from and was surprised to see a cloaked figure roughly twenty feet away in front of an alley, wielding the object in hand. She looked at the object and raised an eyebrow in surprise and curiosity.

'A boomerang?'

Now that was a rarity to see, especially in these lands. She had seen a boomerang once some years ago, but never thought too much of it as it was more of a novelty item than anything else. The stranger was looking at the dead bodies, his face out of view from her. Finally, he put away his boomerang before turning and walking towards her. She kept her position but still was slightly wary of him as he approached. She then raised an eyebrow as he got close enough, seeing just how short he was compared to her even though she was much taller than even many males ( **A/N: 5'6" was actually pretty tall in those days, especially for women** ).

"You alright, miss?" he asked as he removed his mask underneath his hood, allowing her to take a look at him. When he got within five feet of her, she blinked in surprise as he looked to be just a kid, maybe thirteen years old at most! In addition, based on his facial complexion and accent, he must be a foreigner, too. It also appeared he was involved in the scuffle in some way as he had a bandage on his cheek, or at least had a scuffle recently.

"Yes, I am. And I believe I have you to thank for that?" she responded with a small smile on her face while hiding her slight unease from the attack. The boy gave a somewhat bashful smile before nodding. She looked at him a bit before giving another smile. 'Must be a little nervous,' she thought before speaking again. "Tell me, what is your name young one?"

"My-my name's Link," he said somewhat shyly. She thought his demeanor rather cute as her smile widened a little at that.

"Link...Well, a pleasure to meet you, Link. My name is Setsuka." ( **A/N: "Snow Flower."** )

"Setsuka," he repeated as if testing the name. "That's a very pretty name."

"Why thank you, Link," she replied with a light giggle before giving a gesture to follow her. "Come, let us get out of this rain before it gets worse. I know a place we can talk more comfortably."

"HALT! STAY WHERE YOU ARE!"

Before they could get anywhere, the two were surprised by four armored men approaching and surrounding them, weapons drawn. They surrounded them before one of them went past them to inspect the bodies. "You're not going anywhere, gaijins. I saw you killing these men," he said while looking at Setsuka, "and I saw _you_ ," he said turning to Link, "assist her in slaying one of them."

That made Link widen his eyes in shock at what he was implying. He was defending her! SHE was the one being attacked, not the other way around. Didn't he realize that?

Setsuka was hoping to avoid this, which was why she headed towards a remote area to take care of those men. Apparently, these soldiers happened to be nearby when they fought. Now she _had_ to talk her way out of this. "Easy, gentlemen. No need to get excited. These four men attempted to rob and assault me. I merely defended myself and-"

"ENOUGH!" the other man yelled. "Save your words, gaijin. WE'LL get to the bottom of this. For now, hand over your weapons," he ordered while moving his blade closer to her neck, who merely frowned in response but stayed silent.

Link was at a loss here. This guy was acting like _they_ were the guilty party! Didn't they see them attack first? 'Apparently, not. Goddesses, what do I do here? Comply and risk losing my stuff? Or decline and try to escape somewhere?...And be wanted by the authorities?' Neither option sounded appealing as he looked back and forth between the men and the woman Setsuka, who surprisingly kept a neutral expression despite the tension between them and the blade near her neck.

"Hmm...very well," he heard her state before slowly pulling the blade out of her umbrella and handing it over but kept the umbrella part over her head. She then gave a look to Link and gave a slight gesture with her head towards them, as if to say 'Do what they said.' He looked between her and them one more time before breathing out a sigh and slowly pulling out his boomerang and handing it to one of the other soldiers.

"And your sword, boy."

Darn. He was hoping they wouldn't see that, but he nonetheless complied as he gave it to the same soldier. 'At least he didn't notice the shield.'

Satisfied, he then turned towards his man who was inspecting the bodies. "Alright, Satoshi. What can you tell us about these men?" he asked.

After a few more moments, the man known as Satoshi walked back towards them to report. "Well, lieutenant. Two of these men I recognize."

"Oh? And who might they be, then?" he asked in interest, ready to arrest these two gaijins.

"One is a gang leader known as Takage; the other is his close confidant Ryoku. These two I know have been spotted mugging and stealing in the past from anyone that wandered into these parts. I recognize their faces from earlier reports on this gang. The other two look to be some recruits of theirs."

That caused the lieutenant to frown at that news, briefly looking at the two with a displeased look before looking back at Satoshi. "And you are sure about this, Satoshi? You are positive these men are as you describe?"

Inside, Satoshi was a little surprised and confused at his superior's demeanor. It was as if he sounded disappointed at the news. He wasn't sure why that was, but he didn't voice it. "Hai, sir. I am 100% certain of what I described."

That caused his frown to deepen and narrow his eyes at the two gaijins. He never did like gaijins. It reminded him too much of how those Westerners brought those rifles to this land as part of their trade deals. A lot of his men found themselves out of work as a result, something he was understandably not happy with. He lost maybe half his squad from the cutbacks, and so anything (or anyone) from outside this land he looked at with contempt. But he also knew his men would not lie to him, and so he trusted his soldier's report.

"Hmm...Very well," he stated slowly before turning back to the other two, the scowl still present on his face. "So, it _seems_ you fought off some known gang members. _However_...I would still like an account of what just happened here. Asuma, you take the child to the side and I'll interrogate him later. First I'll interrogate the woman. Satoshi? Koga? You pile the bodies together and clean up as much as you can. Make sure to gather the scattered weapons. We'll remove the bodies when we're done."

"Uh...oyabun? Is it really necessary to move him aside just to question him? Why don't we just ask them both here?" asked Asuma.

At that, he turned and gave his subordinate a rather sharp stare while stepping into his face, which made him quite a bit nervous. "Rule #1: Never let suspects stay together."

'Suspects!? That Satoshi guy just said those were gang members! CRIMINALS! How are WE the suspects?' Link thought incredulously to himself. Are all soldiers here like this?

"Well...how much trouble can they be?" Asuma continued. "I mean he's only, what? Twelve? Thirteen? Plus, I don't think there'd be any way or any _reason_ for them to make up a sto-" He suddenly flinched as he received a hard smack to the back of the head.

"On it, oyabun! Moving the boy aside, now," he said quickly. For some reason, Link felt something akin to a large drop of sweat suddenly appearing on the back of his head and just hanging there. Why he felt like that, he didn't know, but he didn't have time to ponder it before being dragged to the side. Just before he got out of earshot, he could hear the lieutenant mutter one last word.

"Baka."

* * *

Link found himself led away by about fifty feet from where he was. He was rather annoyed at how the guy was basically dragging him by the arm in doing so before they finally stopped, rubbing his arm in the process.

"Don't take it personally, kid. Oyabun is often high strung, especially with the daimyo coming to town tomorrow and he doesn't want anything going wrong."

"Is that why he's in a particularly bad mood? We didn't do anything wrong. She just defended herself and I helped save her when that one guy surprised her from behind."

At that Asuma looked at him funny. "That one...Gai? Is that what his name was? Gai?"

Now, LINK was looking at him funny. "Uh...no. I meant 'guy' as in that man. I don't know what his name was." Asuma gave him yet another confused look, still not understanding. "Uh...Where I come from, the word 'guy' is a term we use when referring to a male but don't know his name."

"Uh, huh...And that's common back home, huh? And where is 'home' for you exactly?"

Uh, oh. It seemed he used a term they were unfamiliar with, which led to him being asked a question he wanted to avoid. "Well...I don't...really have a home anywhere. Not any more...I..." he started before stopping himself.

Asuma saw his hesitation and got the impression it was a sensitive subject for him. 'Or he's hiding something.'

However, he decided to give him the benefit of the doubt...for now. "Alright. I can see it looks like a touchy subject for you. So, what CAN you tell me about your home, then?"

Link looked at him for a bit. He seemed a lot easier to work with, not willing to push the issue too much. In fact, he was FAR more tolerable than that lieutenant of his. Maybe if he told this Asuma, he can in turn tell it to the lieutenant and he won't have to ask him anything at all? He decided to try it out. He stayed silent for a bit to gather his thoughts before replying.

"Well, I was orphaned when I was young. I never even knew my parents growing up as they were dead by then. I've been traveling from place to place for a number of years now, traveling all over before exploring this land. I guess you could call me a...what's the word?...drifter—not really staying in one place for long before moving on to another."

"I see," he said slowly while giving a nod. Something about that sounded off to him, but he DID sound sincere in being orphaned. Once again, he decided to give him the benefit of the doubt. "So what brings you here in Otsu, then? To see the daimyo I take it?" he asked, only to see him shake his head.

"No, I wasn't even aware the daimyo was coming here. I'm heading to Osaka. I've been in this land for a couple months now, but I'm planning on heading to Europe...assuming there's a ship willing to take the trip."

Asuma gave him a funny look at that part. "Europe, huh? That's a long way from here. On occasion, some ships do go there, but not often as it generally takes a couple months or so to get there. Maybe more. I'm not really sure. So, what made you decide to go halfway around the world just to go right back?...I'm assuming that's where you're from, right? Europe?" he asked slowly.

Link blinked at that. 'He thinks I'm from Europe? Then again, sensei thought the same thing when he asked where I was from. Hmm, how to respond...' He thought back to what his sensei taught him whenever faced with such a situation.

' _Remember, tell the truth whenever you can. Where_ _necessary to help avoid answering certain follow-up questions, word your explanations in such a way so they are still truthful while also leaving out some specifics. Add some half-truths as needed so as to help make the explanations sound credible and believable_.'

After taking a moment to gather his thoughts, Link finally answered. "Well...honestly, I'm not sure where I was born. I've mainly just been letting life take me wherever I go. Even if it's over a long distance. I've mainly traveled on land, but I figured it would be easier heading to Europe by water. Plus...I've never been on a ship before. Not a big one, anyway, so I figured I could kill two birds with one stone, if you will."

Which was all true. He wasn't sure if he was born in Castle Town or Kakariko Village; he'd mainly taken life as it came, which took him to many different places as a result and covered a lot of ground and distance in the process; he'd been traveling for nearly three years now; he had indeed been in Japan for two months; he traveled either by horse or foot in all those three years; and he really hadn't been on a ship before unless you count those small motor boats the Gerudo pirates used in Termina. And a giant sea turtle didn't count, either.

Asuma, however, was still looking at him in confusion. "'Kill two birds with one stone?' Why would you want to kill birds? And why use a stone? Why not like an arrow? Probably easier to hit one with."

For some reason that strange feeling of a large drop of sweat suddenly appearing on the back of his head came back again. Why did he feel like that? Did others in this world get that feeling? He was about to reply before he stopped to actually think about how the expression sounded literally. "Actually...it does sound pretty dark, now that I think about it. I'm not sure who first used it; I just started using it out of habit when I first heard it. It basically means getting two things done at the same time while using the same amount of work for just one."

"Hmm...I'll have to remember that one," he said in interest. "So, what can you tell me happened here?"

Link gave a small shrug, seeing no issue with answering this one. "Well, while looking for an inn, I happened to notice these four guys following her. With the way they looked at her, I figured they meant to harm her, so I followed them to make sure she didn't get hurt. Eventually they stopped in this area and started talking. While talking, they surrounded her while the leader pulled a sword at her. He then slowly made a move to grab her. Whether to rob her or something else, I couldn't tell from where I was standing. Seeing this, I was about surprise them from behind...only to see her effortlessly take them out by herself. She's...quite skilled to say the least," which Asuma shrug-nodded in agreement, having seen much of the fight himself as he and the others were running towards them upon hearing a man scream in pain and clashes of metal happening afterwards. By the time they were in sight, they were able to see her kill three of the four men with ease.

"As she was walking away, one of them had recovered and attacked her from behind. Seeing she was unaware of this, possibly due to the thunder drowning out his movements, I hit him with my boomerang to distract him, which stunned him long enough for her to recover and defend herself."

Asuma nodded at that while looking at the boomerang in question. He had to admit it was an intricate design. He tossed it straight up a couple times, testing its weight before giving it a test throw. He watched as it circled around in a smooth 360. While making the catch on its return throw, he slightly misjudged his timing as he bobbled it a couple times, almost dropping it in the process but still caught it, albeit awkwardly. He chuckled a bit to himself at that before speaking up again. "Very interesting. Where'd you get this, kid, anyway? It seems quite impressive. And how about the sword? Alright if I take a look at it?"

"Uh...sure," he replied before realizing too late maybe he shouldn't have. 'Great, another one to answer, AND he's going to look at the sword...Goddesses, this is harder and more stressful than I thought coming up with answers like this,' he thought, but hid his uncomfortableness from Asuma. 'Hmm, what should I say...I've got it!'

"They...were family heirlooms. I don't know where they originally got them from, but...after my parents died, I decided to take them with me on my travels. They're some of the only things I have left from home..." he replied, a little saddened at the end, which he genuinely was. It still hurt him at having to leave his home again...and possibly forever. He shook his head at that. 'Don't go there, Link.'

While he was talking, Asuma was inspecting the sword. He had to admit it was a well-crafted blade. The sword almost seemed to glow and felt very well-balanced. The ruby in the hilt was a rather nice touch as well. Satisfied, he put it back in its sheath just as the lieutenant stepped up to them.

"Well? What have you found out, Asuma?"

'Wait, what? Wasn't the lieutenant going to ask him some questions now?' But he stayed silent as he listened to Asuma repeating everything he had just said to him. Huh, guess he WAS going to tell him after all. Then maybe the lieutenant won't have to ask him anything? Sure wouldn't bother Link. He'd had his share of dealing with him for one day.

'Or lifetime. One angry Darunia was enough.'

The lieutenant looked at him on occasion as he spoke before giving him a harsh stare when he realized their stories matched. 'Hmm. Looks like I have no choice but to _not_ arrest them...THIS time,' he added before speaking aloud. "Very well..." he said before turning back to Asuma. "Good work, Asuma. I have all I need now to report to the general. Give the gaijin his weapons back and then help clean up the mess in the streets before it starts pouring."

"Right, oyabun," he said with a bit of pride and satisfaction at the praise he got before handing Link his boomerang and sword. "Nice talking to you, kid."

"Uh...yeah. You too, Asuma-san," he said with a bow, but he had this nagging feeling that something felt a bit off about all that, particularly when the lieutenant said "Good work" to him. Just what did that mean? He watched Asuma help his fellow soldiers clean the mess in the streets, still trying to figure it out before letting it go with a shrug. He and Setsuka were no longer in trouble, so that was enough for him.

The lieutenant, meanwhile, was still looking at him tough but inside gave a chuckle when the kid shrugged as the boy didn't seem to realize just how easily Asuma got the information out of him. 'If he isn't careful, his trusting nature may get himself killed some day,' he thought with a smirk at that last part. Asuma had a gift for getting information out of people simply by talking casually to them, getting them to drop their guard from the pleasant talk before subtly asking for key information in the process. Except in the case of women—he usually tried flirting with them in the process, hence why he had him talk to the boy instead. 'Now, if he could just curb that casualness and _immediately_ follow his orders, then maybe I wouldn't have to smack him in the back of the head all the time. Sometimes I wonder if he _enjoys_ that,' he thought before gesturing for the female gaijin to walk up to them, her sword having been returned to her as well.

"Alright. I suggest you two move along now. We're expecting important company to come to town in the morning, and so I suggest you both stay out of trouble. _Understood_?" he reiterated to them, receiving a couple bows and "Hais" in reply before nodding and grunting in approval, turning back to help his men remove the bodies.

Link and Setsuka watched him for a bit with frowns on their faces before a crash of thunder got their attention and the rain started coming down harder. "Come on, Link. Let us get out of the rain. As I was saying, I know of a place where we can talk more comfortably. Follow me," she said, which Link wordlessly followed, anxious to get out of the rain. 'Hopefully where she's headed is to an inn,' he thought.

* * *

After a few minutes of briskly walking/jogging through the rain, the two walked underneath the roof of their destination. They started shaking the excess water before Setsuka spoke up.

"Much better being out of the rain. I must say their lieutenant was rather impolite. I think he was quite anxious to arrest us and was rather disappointed when he couldn't."

"Mm," Link nodded in agreement as he shook off his boots of excess water.

"Now then, let's hope they have a couple rooms available...though I must say it looks rather crowded already," she stated and looking at the many people dining inside.

Huh. So this WAS an inn after all. That's good, Link thought.

But as soon as they entered, the eyes of virtually everyone in the room glanced their way, something they both took note of. After all, it wasn't often they saw two foreigners enter this place, let alone this country. Setsuka ignored such glances as they accepted a couple towels from a servant to dry with, having been used to such looks all her life. Link, however, was less accustomed to it and was a little uncomfortable at the attention, while also mentally kicking himself for forgetting to put his mask back on.

He had taken it off to show Setsuka he meant no harm but didn't put it back on before arriving at the inn. Or the soldiers, though, they might have ordered him to remove it anyway. He was starting to realize the magnitude of just how important such tiny details were and how easily they can be overlooked, just like his sensei warned him. Looks like he still needed to work on that.

After drying themselves, they then turned their attention to the desk clerk at the counter who had a less than pleasant look on his face before forcing a smile on his face. "Welcome to Sun & Moon Inn. How can I help you today?"

"We were wondering if you had a couple rooms available for the night as well as order a meal, if that is alright," Setsuka replied.

"Hmm, that so?" He looked at the two with suspicion, not used to dealing with Westerners. He was internally surprised she responded in fluent Japanese. She must have been in this land longer than he thought. "I must say, you two looked to have journeyed far to come all this way here. What brings you to our native land?"

"We are but humble travelers passing by and looking for a room for the night as well as a good meal, nothing more. So do you have any rooms available?" she replied calmly, not wanting to have to go through the same thing like with the lieutenant.

The man continued to scrutinize her and the boy with suspicion. The woman had long blonde hair that was pulled back into a ponytail with two bangs poking from underneath the front of her hair that hung down to her cheeks. She wore a kimono with faded red and orange colors with dabs of white here and there, a purple sash to tie it with, and golden tendrils at the edge of the sleeves. One sleeve she left unused that left her entire right arm exposed, though he wasn't sure why she wore it like that. Her arms had fingerless purple gloves and gold bands around the elbow and wrists and had a type of flower-shaped decoration in her hair. Her right arm also had what appeared to be a tattoo of a kitsune with maybe nine tails on it and she held an umbrella in her hand. Of course the most noticeable thing he observed was she also showed a considerable amount of cleavage of her very ample chest.

Gaijin or not, he had no problem appreciating such a view.

He gradually pried his eyes away from her (*cough* chest) to the boy who was also a gaijin based on his facial complexion. They were related, perhaps? He had golden blonde hair with a green tunic of some kind he had never seen before with an equally green floppy cap. He also had unusually deep blue eyes, a shade of blue he had never seen before. Maybe that was common back in the West? Oh well.

He then saw a bandage on his cheek. And then caught a glance of a sword underneath his cloak. 'Hmm, and she lets him keep that weapon? Given their foreign heritage, perhaps he keeps one to defend themselves against trouble while here, which he seems to have encountered recently. And does she have one? Does not appear so. Still...going to keep an eye on them just in case.'

"Hmm, I see. Very well, any reservations? No? Well, let me see if any rooms left. The daimyo is expected to pass through here from Kyoto on important business. A rather unexpected trip, but nonetheless, many people are coming to see him pass by in hopes to catch a glimpse of him. Rooms not easily available as a result. Many places booked full already."

Setsuka didn't reply but frowned slightly. She had no interest in seeing the daimyo, but the event _would_ make it harder to find a room anywhere in town, let alone two. He continued looking through his register, tracing his finger over the pages before finally stopping.

"Well, we in luck; we have one last room available. But…"

Setsuka frowned more upon hearing that. That was never a good sign and didn't like the feeling as to what he was going to say next. Her look then turned to annoyance when he was purposely waiting for her to reply. "But…what?"

"But…only one bed available."

Both of them frowned at that. If what the man said was true, they likely wouldn't be able to find another room anywhere else. They heard a deep rumbling of thunder and briefly looked outside as the rain almost seemed to pour harder, if that was possible. It sounded as if a monsoon was happening outside.

Now Setsuka wasn't sure what to do. She certainly didn't want to force the boy to have go back out there to find a room—if one was even available. At the same time, sharing a room with a stranger was sure to get the wrong impression. Even if he did save her life. But before she could reply, Link beat her to it.

"You can have the room. I'll look at other inns."

She turned to and blinked at him in surprise. She was planning on giving _him_ the room while _she_ looked for another one. She shook her head before replying. "I cannot accept a room and leave one as young as you to look for another in such vile weather. I shall instead look while you have this room."

Link, however, was having none of it, shaking his head no. "No. You stay. The rain doesn't bother me. I can look for a room elsewhere." But as soon as he said that, he flinched a bit as a crash of thunder filled their ears (particularly Link's sensitive ears), frightening some of the other patrons there as well. He looked outside with a small frown at that. Maybe that would be more difficult than he thought...especially with the amount of luck he had trying to find an inn in the first place.

Setsuka debated in her mind what to do. Neither wanted to force the other to look for another room in such vile weather that may not even be available. Sleeping together, particularly with someone she just met, would also be rather awkward, especially given the age difference. One of them could sleep on the floor...though given how this man has treated them thus far, she wouldn't be surprised if the one room available was also run down in some way. Or if there was some _other_ similar reason the room was available.

She looked him over again as she analyzed what she knew of him so far. He seemed to be a polite young man, a little humble when she thanked him for saving her earlier, and not once did he look at her with any ill intent. Or ogle at her chest like many boys his age and older were prone to do—like what a certain desk manager was still doing along with other male patrons who were watching them (with some getting smacked by their female companions in response).

Plus the fact he _did_ save her earlier, and even was willing to brave the elements to find another room to avoid any such awkwardness.

After a few more moments of silence, she made up her mind. "Give us a moment, please," she said to the desk clerk, who nodded and remained silent as they moved to discuss amongst each other.

"Link," she addressed him as they moved to a more private area to the side. "I have been giving it some thought. Obviously, the circumstances are not what we desired. Neither one of us wants to have the other walk in such heavy rain to find another room that may not even be available. So after thinking it over, here's what I think we should do. Let us sign our names now so at least we know we have _this_ room. Then we can dine and talk for a bit to pass the time. If the storm dies down after we're done eating, we can look to see if any other rooms are available elsewhere. Otherwise, we'll share the room available to us. And if that's the case, maybe by then we would be at least a little more comfortable with each other to share a room together. Would this be acceptable?"

Link thought it over, occasionally looking out the window at the storm. It did sound reasonable to him. Give them time for the storm to (hopefully) die down, and if it shouldn't, at least by then maybe they would be more comfortable enough to endure sleeping together…awkward as it might be, though hopefully it wouldn't come to that. Although strangely, he suddenly felt a part of him say he hoped it _would_ come to that. Where did _that_ thought come from?

He briefly shook his head from those thoughts before finally nodding in agreement. "Ha-hai, I think that would work," he replied, prompting a satisfied smile on her face.

With that, she gestured back towards the desk clerk. "Very well. Let us sign our names then," she stated as they walked back to the desk clerk, who couldn't help but take another glance at her chest.

"Well, what did you two decide?"

'Lech,' she thought in disgust. "We have decided to take the room for now, both of us. We plan on eating now; should the storm calm down when we're done eating, we will look to see if another room is available elsewhere. Otherwise, we will share the room."

"Ho ho! Very good plan. Though I will need payment now for the room here. The cost will be 100 Mon." ( **A/N: Not sure how much things cost back then, so I just guessed.** )

Setsuka blinked and widened her eyes in surprise for the first time since arriving before an angry look adorned her face. "100 Mon!? For one room? I've stayed at inns in the area before, and they charged only 45 at most!" she almost shouted in restrained anger. She had often seen people try to swindle her before, but this was overkill!

Link stayed silent but noticed this was the most animated he had seen her since meeting her. Apparently the 100 Mon was a lot—at least for a room.

The man was unaffected by her outburst. "Like I said, special occasion happening, and so prices are higher as a result. You can either take it or leave this place immediately," he added with a hard look at the end. 'Well-stacked woman or not, business is business and money is money.'

She glared at him at the high price he was charging. It seemed to be a common practice for any inn to overcharge like that during any major event that occurred in a town. While she could still ultimately pay that much, it would leave a sizable dent in her finances for her continued travels. And then there was having to pay for a meal, which also would likely be overpriced. She glared a bit longer before finally sighing and giving a resigned look, but before she could accept, she saw Link place something on the register; though she couldn't see it as his hand was still covering it.

"Would this be acceptable? For both the room AND meals?" He then slowly moved his hand away, and to the surprise of both Setsuka and the desk clerk, they saw three green gems each about an inch and a half long and a little over a quarter of an inch thick and looked expertly carved.

The man blinked between them and Link in surprise for a bit. Having been swindled by fake jewelry and money in the past, he carefully took one and took it to the back to avoid others from looking at it as he scrutinized it more closely, observing every detail from its size, color, edges, reflection, etc. He looked at it for a couple minutes before widening his eyes in surprise.

These weren't fake gems; they were the real deal!...And they looked VERY valuable.

"Uh…Yes! Yes! This should be just fine young man. Yes, sign here please," he stated excitedly after returning from the back, taking the other gems and pocketing them before anyone else could see them, although some of the other patrons did look at each other in surprise and confusion, wondering what the boy gave him. Well, he wasn't going to share and risk getting robbed!

This all worked out better than he thought! He was charging them more than double the other tenants, and this was enough to cover every room in the inn for the night—and the meals to boot if they all wanted one and then some. 'Yes, a very good deal indeed,' he thought greedily, not caring in the slightest where the boy got them.

They both signed their names, Setsuka a bit slowly, still in shock at the gems Link gave him. "Now then, as agreed you each get a meal with payment. You may have whatever you like." He then turned to a waitress passing by. "You, Ayane. Take orders from these two. Meals and everything already paid for, so give them whatever they wish."

A roughly fifteen to sixteen year-old girl in a white kimono with green ends on the sleeves with brown hair in a ponytail and holding a couple bowls looked surprised at her oyabun's actions. He hadn't been this excited in quite a while. In fact, he had been quite demanding today with all the guests dining and coming in, so these two must have done something—or _given_ him something—to make him act so happily. She shrugged and nonetheless did as requested, seating them by a wall away from the crowd who were mostly seated in the center of the room, but she _did_ take notice of the boy. Despite his foreign looks, he looked very cute. Check that. VERY, very cute.

'Maybe tonight won't be so bad after all,' she thought with a blush.

* * *

 **A/N: **I was initially going to have them go straight to the inn after she took out those men, but decided that may have made the daimyo paranoid of assassination while in town and cause problems in the morning, so I decided to have the two encounter the local authorities and have to explain the situation before continuing. Hope it was decently written, at least.****

 **Can you guess who I based the lieutenant and Asuma after in their little interactions? Probably my favorite TV show of all time. I still crack up laughing every time I see those incidents on the show. **I like to add an Easter egg every now and then :) Bonus points to those who can guess where I got the names for the named gang members and soldiers.****

 ** **The anime sweatdrop gag will not be a recurring thing in this story. Just a quick homage to it as I'm a big fun of such anime like Naruto, Bleach, Megaman NT Warrior, Dragonball Z, and Inuyasha among others.****

 **Another thing I'm trying to do my best on is when the characters are speaking, I try to use terms and expressions that existed in 1591, which is about when Soul Calibur II-IV take place. I remember in the first Avengers movie Thor was confused about a Wizard of Oz expression Nick Fury used while Captain America knew what he was talking about, of which he is normally just as confused as Thor is upon hearing such expressions. Thor also used a term I think he called "bull-snipe" to Agent Phil Coulson to describe how his people sometimes behaved, a term that in turn confused Coulson as he'd never heard of it before. I guarantee I will miss some, so just work with me on that when I do a word or term that didn't exist then.**

 **From what I researched, the word "guy" wasn't used as a general term for a male until the nineteenth century and the expression "to kill two birds with one stone" wasn't around until the 1600's from what I read, and so that's why Asuma was confused on those terms and expressions.**

 **You may have noticed in past chapters where Link is _thinking_ the word "ok" which didn't appear until the nineteenth century, but he hasn't actually spoken that word aloud to anyone. That was deliberate. Instead he uses words learned from Hachibei such as "alright" or "very well" or something similar. You'll likely see him use more words and expressions in later chapters not around in 1591 that will provide similar confusion to those he interacts with. Might even be a running gag :)**

 **Next time, Link and Setsuka have a little "date" as it were. What will they talk about? How will they get along? Will they end up sharing a room after all? Or will they not?**

 **And what will the waitress do? How will she fit in?** **And FYI, she's just a character I made up, not from anything in the games, any other game or anime or anything.**

 ** ** ** **For now, this is Agent Ghost-Writer 000 signing off.********


	7. Chapter 7 - Date with the Snow Flower

**.**

This is a sentence. - Narration. No character speaking or thinking.

"This is a sentence." - Character speaking out loud.

'This is a sentence.' - Character speaking in his/her head.

This _is_ a sentence. - Emphasis placed on the italic word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

This IS a sentence. - Same as with the single italic, just a variation of expressing the emphasis.

 _This is a sentence. -_ All italics means the event is happening in a flashback of which I would give a quick note prior saying a flashback is occurring.

 _This_ is _a sentence_. - During a flashback, emphasis placed in the normal text word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

 **.**

 **"Hai" - Yes**

 **"Oyabun" - Boss**

 **"Itadakimasu" - Generally translated as "I humbly receive," and is often compared with the expression "Bon Appetite."**

 ** **I do not own The Legend of Zelda or Soul Calibur.****

* * *

 **Chapter 7 – Date with the Snow Flower - Part I**

After taking their orders, the two were left to themselves as Setsuka opened the conversation with the boy that saved her.

"Now that we don't have any rain or annoying soldiers or hassling desk clerks to worry about, we can finally have a proper conversation," she said with a bit of humor, Link letting out a short laugh at that. "So tell me, Link. What brings you to this land? And where are you from exactly, if I may ask?"

Well this sounded familiar, Link thought. "Well...I guess you could call me a drifter. I've been traveling from place to place for a number of years now, traveling all over and not really staying in one place for long. I've been around this land for a couple months now, but I'm planning on heading to Europe."

Setsuka tilted her head at that. "Hmm. Europe, huh? That's quite literally on the other side of the world. Is that where you're from originally? Like England? Romania? Ireland perhaps? Also, where did you find such gems? Is that were you got them? They looked to be quite rare."

She then saw Link shift a bit uncomfortably at all the questions. 'Maybe I shouldn't have asked so many questions at once,' she thought sheepishly. She had to admit it was rare for her to express herself like that.

Link, however, was feeling uncomfortable not just at the questions she asked, but how to reply. Giving explanations to government officials was one thing, but he wasn't sure of doing the same for her. She wasn't some government authority assessing the situation—just someone wanting to get to know him more. If he didn't say his story right, she might very well pick up on it. And if that happened...possibly kick him out in the rain in a fury for trying to deceive her...even if he paid for the room. He remembered in his travels seeing another guy make a woman so upset she literally kicked him out the door despite the fact it was also his home and not just hers. And it was raining outside then, too.

Plus, he didn't like seeing a hurt expression on someone. Or worse, be the _cause_ of hurting someone's feelings. That was a scenario where he wasn't sure he could forgive himself if he did something like that. He did his best to get _along_ with everyone he met, not the other way around.

With all that in mind, Link felt he was overall a good judgment of character, and when he looked at Setsuka, he didn't feel anything bad from her...although he was still a little uncomfortable with the fact she resorted to killing those gang members. Killing beasts and demons were one thing, but killing another person still caused him to frown, guilty as those guys might have been.

Still...she _did_ come up with the idea they had now regarding the room situation—and found the inn to begin with while he was having no luck on his own. Trusting his instincts, he decided to be upfront with her...but still leave out the part of him being from another world.

"No. I'm…not actually from Europe. My home is...elsewhere but still very far away. I am looking to find the one who is threatening my home, and I just recently found the one responsible is in Europe, and so I am looking for passage there. I intend to stop him before anyone else gets hurt."

She kept a neutral expression, though she did tilt her head again upon hearing his answer, one she was not expecting from a child. She took note on a few things from his response: One, that his home was being threatened; Two, his home _wasn't_ in Europe even though his complexion and clothing would indicate otherwise; Three, that his home was somehow threatened by someone in _Europe_ , literally on the other side of the world; Four, he stated it as if an _individual_ threatened his home as opposed to like a country or other army; and Five, that a _child_ was trying to save his home instead of like an older warrior. Or at least multiple warriors. She also noted he didn't answer about the gems, but decided to ignore it and focus more on his apparent mission.

"I see. And this threat is all the way in Europe, you say? How is it your home is threatened from so far away, then? Where _is_ your home, exactly, if not in Europe?"

Link stayed silent, though he did frown a bit, she noticed. It seemed he was having trouble coming up with a response, though she only knew of one possibility offhand that could threaten his home all the way from there. Even though it sounded like it was one individual threatening his home (somehow), she still decided to ask just to be sure.

"Hmm. Is one of the empires trying to take over? I think England, Portugal, Spain, and France are some of the largest empires over there while also having an influence in these lands," she asked, only to see Link shake his head no.

"No, I am not familiar with them. My home is...isolated from the rest of the world, but what threatens it I know currently resides in Europe. If it isn't stopped now, it will eventually return some day and finish what it started."

Setsuka couldn't help but notice his sad expression at the end. From how he said it, it sounded like people were killed from the experience. Possibly someone close...

"You lost someone from that incident...didn't you?" Link looked up at her with a little surprise at that. "That's why you are determined to end it yourself. You want revenge for killing your loved ones...Your parents, I imagine?"

Link stared at her for a bit, not sure how to reply, particularly at that last part. Although he did intend to destroy Soul Edge, the part about wanting revenge...didn't sound right to him—either the term in and of itself or her comparison in what he was doing in accomplishing his mission. He nonetheless shook his head before replying. "No, I personally did not lose anyone in that attack...but many people did suffer and die nonetheless. I actually stopped the attacker myself...though, I didn't do it unscathed," he said while rubbing his side, which Setsuka took notice of before he continued.

"However, he was just acting on behalf of another. The real threat is just an individual, not another country, but a very powerful individual. He was weakened last I heard, and so I'm heading there to stop him before he recovers and anyone else gets hurt."

Setsuka listened to his explanation in interest. She had to admit, the boy had great courage in undertaking such a task. And he said he defeated the one originally attacking his home? She was a bit skeptical, but he gave no indication he was lying. And it was indeed _not_ another country threatening his home, but an individual? Just who would be powerful enough to have such an influence? And from so far away? And why did he refer to the threat as "it" as opposed to "him" earlier? Suddenly a thought came to her as to just who he was after and leaned a little closer to voice it...unintentionally giving Link a better view of her cleavage, who quickly shifted his eyes and tried to hide his blush.

"Hmm...This individual you are after. Would it be 'Nightmare' by any chance?" She saw Link's eyes widen at that and knew she hit the mark.

"Like...the Azure Knight 'Nightmare?'" Setsuka nodded in reply. "Uh...Ha-hai. But, how did _you_ know?"

"Actually...I didn't."

Wait, what? "You didn't? But, how..." he trailed off.

"I had a pretty good idea, though," Setsuka continued. "I've heard rumors about some warrior in azure armor boasting about having the powers of a god. I've heard some people call him the 'Azure Knight' while others called him 'Nightmare' and was said to be in Europe. I don't know about him having powers of a 'god,' but he must at the very least be highly skilled for such rumors to abound even way out here. And since you said it was an _individual_ posing such a threat, that sounded like the best possibility. Perhaps...he _is_ as strong as advertised, if he threatens your home as you say?"

Link slowly nodded in reply. "Hai. He is _very_ strong and powerful. His henchman alone killed hundreds, maybe over a thousand and caused a lot of damage as well. And if that was the strength of the apprentice, just imagine how strong the master must be," he added grimly as he looked down at the thought of that.

Setsuka was saddened to hear of the many people killed, and yet impressed the boy was willing to go so far to avenge them. Then another thought came to her, but she leaned closer again so no one could overhear (with Link having to again quickly avert his eyes). "Tell me something, Link. Another rumor I've heard every now and then was something called 'Soul Edge.' I've heard it's supposed to be a powerful sword in and of itself. 'The Sword of Swords,' or 'The Sword of Heroes' or something similar, and it's also supposedly in Europe as well. Have you heard of it?"

Link stayed silent, but she saw Link's eyes widen at the words "Soul Edge" which confirmed he _did_ know at least something about it.

"Hmm...So that's what threatens your home, isn't it? This 'Nightmare' and he does so with this 'Soul Edge' weapon. Correct?" she said softly.

Link looked at her for a bit, wondering if it would be alright to confirm that. She seemed very observant, but he again didn't get the impression she had any ill intent in any way. Either towards him or regarding Soul Edge—just wanting to confirm her suspicions. Finally, he nodded in confirmation.

"Hai...that he is," he replied softly.

"I see..." she said softly in return before leaning back a bit. And it appeared this "Soul Edge" rumor and the power related to it wasn't just a rumor as well. "I must say, you are very brave in willing to undertake such a task. But...while I admire your bravery, would your country not send others for such a task? It sounds very overwhelming, particularly for one so young, even if you killed the one who was originally attacking your people. Are there others elsewhere helping you in this mission?"

Link looked down in sadness before shaking his head. "It _is_ overwhelming. And, no...I was the only one sent to destroy Soul Edge and Nightmare."

"But, why just you? Unless..." she stopped, her eyes widening in realization before softening. "Hmm...I think I see. With the deaths your land suffered, you're the only fighter left from your home that can stop him...right?" she said slowly.

Link looked at her briefly before looking back down. "Yes, I was the only sent to stop him. Not because I'm the only fighter left, but because...there is simply no one else who can," he stated, almost as a whisper.

She tilted her head in confusion. There was no one else who can? Despite having other fighters or warriors? "What do you mean?"

Link then started explaining his situation like he did with Hachibei (minus the location of his home), starting with how he grew up and how his journey began, though he gave but a very brief summary of his journey to save Hyrule and left out the specifics of his travels outside of Hyrule before returning to face the carnage that awaited him when he returned.

As she listened to his more detailed explanation, she couldn't help but feel saddened to hear how he was indeed orphaned, and at such a young age. And how he was also bullied and picked on a lot as a child simply because he was born different. She almost felt tears in her eyes as she listened to some of his most painful times growing up and as well as on his journey. He was...

'Just like me...we're the same,' she thought sadly. She suddenly felt herself connecting with the boy a little more, finding someone who felt the same pain she had in life...

He then explained the sorcerer who attacked his home and how he stopped him, only to find that he had a shard of Soul Edge that had given him his power, and then explained how the Princess had sent him on a secret mission to stop Soul Edge and the Azure Knight before it threatened his home again. She listened in rapt attention, her hands clasped together with her chin on top of her hands. She had to admit it was a most fascinating story. She about wasn't sure if it was just that. A story. And yet...

"Here you are!" they blinked as a cheery voice from their waitress interrupted them. "Hiyamugi noodles for her and Curry Udon noodles for you. Enjoy!" she stated as she set them down. Sestuka couldn't help but notice she was addressing more to Link than to her when she spoke, and also noticed how Link seemed oblivious to the look she was giving him—especially after he thanked her by name and she giggled in response with a bit of a blush on her cheeks.

She smirked at that. 'So he's polite _and_ oblivious. I'll have to make note of that.'

With an "Itadakimasu," they took a break from their conversation to dine in their meals. As she ate, Setsuka thought back to Link's story. It seemed very far-fetched with what he described...and yet, she felt he was telling the truth. She wasn't even sure if he _could_ lie based on his mannerisms thus far. Despite the answers she got, she still seemed to have more questions than answers.

Nonetheless, she found him quite intriguing and was curious to know more about him...wait, intriguing? That was an odd word to use. It almost sounded as if...she lightly shook her head at that. Such a silly thought, she said to herself, before going back to her meal.

Link, meanwhile, was focused entirely on his meal, being quite famished as he hadn't eaten since early afternoon. He was rather curious about Setsuka, though. He knew she wasn't from here originally but was quite skilled in combat. She said she was traveling as well but did not appear to be looking for Soul Edge. So what was she looking for?

Link had finished his meal before Setsuka was even halfway done with hers, prompting an amused comment from her about how hungry he was which made him blush a little. She had to admit he looked rather cute when he did that, even letting out a slight giggle.

Seeing the waitress come by again, he smiled at her and politely asked her for another bowl, though was a little confused at her reaction. She had stood still for several seconds just staring at him, looking into his eyes almost as if lost in them, sometimes sputtering a bit when she spoke. It was only after he said her name did she say something and was embarrassed for some reason, blushing a bit and apologizing with a hasty bow before going to the kitchen with his order for a second bowl. Weird. That's the second time she acted like that. The first was when she had taken their order, she had done something similar. Was there something on his face? No. She or Setsuka would have said something. Then what was it?

Setsuka pretended not to notice, but inwardly was laughing a bit at her reaction—and Link's obliviousness to it. It appeared girls around here found him quite attractive, foreigner or not. She had to admit, she _did_ find him rather cute. He even said her name was very pretty when he first heard it, which brought a small smile to her face before shaking her head. Maybe if he was older she would be interested in him like that. Like...four or five years older. Well, that wasn't _too_ long from now. By then he...

Wait. Why was she thinking like that? Where did that thought come from!?

She shook her head again to hide a blush she could feel was rising to her cheeks. Thankfully, Link seemed to not notice. Last thing she wanted was to have any embarrassing conversation like that with him. And yet it still made her wonder why such thoughts would enter her mind like that in the first place...and why it would cause her to blush.

* * *

 **A/N: I decided to end it here, as my chapter was getting much longer than I thought it was going to be.**

 **It appears Setsuka has found she has more in common with our little green hero than she would have expected. And seems to have a bit of an attraction to him as well!**

 **What will happen next time during their little "date?"**

 **Stay tuned for Part II!**

 **For now, this is Agent Ghost-Writer 000 signing off.**


	8. Chapter 8 - Date with the Snow Flower II

**.**

This is a sentence. - Narration. No character speaking or thinking.

"This is a sentence." - Character speaking out loud.

'This is a sentence.' - Character speaking in his/her head.

This _is_ a sentence. - Emphasis placed on the italic word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

This IS a sentence. - Same as with the single italic, just a variation of expressing the emphasis.

 _This is a sentence. -_ All italics means the event is happening in a flashback of which I would give a quick note prior saying a flashback is occurring.

 _This_ is _a sentence_. - During a flashback, emphasis placed in the normal text word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

 **.**

 **"Hai" - Yes**

 **"Gomen" - Sorry**

 **"Oyabun" - Boss**

 **"Arigato" - Thank you**

 **"Domo arigato" - Thank you very much**

 ** ** **I do not own The Legend of Zelda or Soul Calibur.******

* * *

 **Chapter 8 - Date with the Snow Flower - Part II**

By the time Link's second bowl arrived (after getting another blushing reaction from the waitress), Setsuka had finished hers. They talked about things in general in that time, such as how the 'interrogations' went, their comments on the antics of Asuma, the weather, Link's boomerang, and her umbrella sword among others. It was during their conversation she learned Link actually turned thirteen tomorrow and finally learned about the gems and how the Princess of his land had given them to him as part of her thanks in stopping the sorcerer and to help him in his journey.

She had to admit this was...nice, the way she was having a conversation with the boy. She wasn't sure if she ever talked this way to anyone about everything and nothing at the same time other than her master. In fact, most didn't even talk to her, period...not that she didn't initiate a conversation with others to begin with. But still, it was a most pleasant experience talking with him like that.

She noticed that Link sometimes seemed to act a bit nervously when talking to her, sometimes looking red in the face at times. He _did_ order a spicy meal. Was it starting to affect him? Or maybe he was rather shy talking to girls and women in general? Maybe because she was an adult as opposed to someone closer to his age? In any event, she ignored it as she spoke again.

"Well, you shared a little bit about yourself. Would you like to know anything about me?" she asked, leaning forward a bit with a pleasant smile on her face. Her smile had a touch of amusement as she saw Link's face as he looked up and paused slightly while slurping his noodle...only to suddenly see him start coughing from inhaling it too fast. "Link, are you-?"

"(cough)...Yeah! Sure! (cough-cough)...just (cough) give me a moment," he blurted out amidst the coughing, wiping his face with a napkin as he composed himself.

'That's odd. He also looks even _more_ red now. Was that last bite a bit too spicy?' On instinct, she started adjusting her kimono from the slight awkwardness—only to widen her eyes and look down at herself in understanding...and embarrassment. Her kimono was exposing considerably more cleavage than intended...and chances are her posture during their conversations were such that it unintentionally brought more attention to her chest—and Link was given almost full view of it. Multiple times.

Setsuka, although a little red now herself, took it in stride as she gave a small smile and finished adjusting herself. 'Maybe I should have worn something less revealing today. I bet he feels quite embarrassed as well.'

"(cough) Ahem. Sorry about that...Wrong throat. Hehe...Um...Where were we?" Link stated nervously after recovering from his coughing fit.

In her head, Setsuka debated whether to tell Link she knew or just pretend she was oblivious to it. Deciding not to embarrass him any further, she went with the latter but still let out a giggle from his nervousness. "I believe you were about to ask _me_ some questions now?"

'Whew...' he thought in relief as he rubbed the back of his head. "Uh...(ahem). Yeah. So then...um, I guess to start, where are you from and what brought you to this land?"

She smiled, glad they were able to put the little "incident" behind them. "Well, to be honest, I am also not sure where I am from originally. Like you, I, too, was orphaned when I was very young. Because I was not born here, many people looked at me with disdain and stayed away from me...almost as if they were afraid of me. Other times, they would bully me as well. Often physically...and frequently. I do not know who my parents were, or even my real name," she said with a hint of sadness before looking down.

Link looked at her intently at that. She was an orphan too? And was bullied and picked on a lot as well? That was...saddening. And depressing. In fact if anything, she was...

'Just like me,' he thought. And she didn't even know her real name? That was...he wasn't sure how to describe that. "Wow, that's...I am sorry to hear that. I did not mean to bring back unpleasant memories," he said with a bow.

"It is alright, Link. No need to apologize," she assured him, raising his head back up as a result. "Normally, I would not share such details but...since we had that much in common, I felt it was alright to share."

The two shared a look between them, one only bullied orphans knew. "So...I know my mother named me Link before she died. How did you get your name? It's a very pretty name, just like you. And your kimono as well."

Setsuka suddenly found herself blushing at his compliments. Was he aware of what he was saying? He said it almost offhandedly with complete innocence in his voice, no hesitation or blushing whatsoever.

Link saw she turned a little red after saying that. "Everything alright, Setsuka? You look a little red. Are you well?"

Brought back to her senses, she shook her head to compose herself. "N-No, I am fine. Arigato for the compliments, though."

Mentally shrugging off his confusion, Link gave a smile, which Setsuka couldn't help but mentally shake her head at. 'Seems he is completely unaware of what he was saying after all. He's going to attract a _lot_ of female attention if he talks to girls like that regularly.'

"Well, to answer your question, it all started many years ago. I had been living in orphanage for a while, where I was constantly abused and bullied almost daily. Finally, I couldn't take it anymore, and so I ran away from the orphanage entirely. Even on the streets, though, I was often treated the same way as at the orphanage and found myself scavenging for any shelter and sustenance I could find...I probably lived on the streets for four years. Maybe five...or more. I'm not really sure...

"Then one day I found myself wandering into a city before a man found me in front of his home. Rather than receiving another round of hate and abuse, instead...he gave me kindness, shelter, and support. He took pity on me and decided to take me into his home and raised me as one of his own, even though he had had no wife or children himself. He was a warrior and bodyguard in the region, and he later taught me his fighting style. I stayed and trained with him for many years, and it was him who gave me the name, 'Setsuka.'"

Link listened with rapt attention, thankful he had finished the rest of his meal by now. When she mentioned she ran away from the orphanage because of the bullying, it...made him wonder if he would have one day done the same and run away from Kokiri Forest—had he not had Saria to help support him. She helped him through some of his worst days, especially from the constant bullying and name calling from the self-proclaimed Boss of the Kokiri, Mido. But Setsuka...

She had no one. Not a single friend growing up. Not a single friend to help support her in her times of hurt and pain. And that hit Link the hardest as he thought how painful it must have been for her. To live with no friends at all. By now he was leaning forward, hands clasped and his chin on his hands with a soft yet attentive look in his eyes as she continued.

"One day, I had returned from a long journey to deliver an important letter per my master's instructions. I was then shocked to see him lying heavily injured and wounded on the floor. He would not tell me how he received them, but I could tell he had been in a duel. His injuries were so severe he could never wield a sword again." She paused as she thought back to her master.

Link swallowed a lump in his throat upon hearing what happened to her master. To see the one person that supported her in life injured like that...it must have been heart-wrenching for her. Seeing how down she looked, he gently placed a hand over hers in comfort.

Setsuka let out a small gasp upon feeling his hand on hers. Did he not realize the taboo of such a gesture? That implied the two were an item, or otherwise engaged or already married. And if they were not, there were generally societal punishments for such gestures—often physical, including beatings on one or even both parties. Or worse.

Then she reasoned it was probably his way of comforting someone back in his home, which was probably acceptable there. Still, best to end it before anyone noticed, though she did feel rather flattered by it nonetheless. She gave a soft smile before nodding at Link, who smiled in return before giving a slight squeeze slowly removing his hand. Strangely, her heart raced very briefly at that, and then she felt slightly disappointed when he had removed his hand. That was odd. Why would she feel disappointment in that?

Mentally shrugging it off, she continued. "His lessons became more strict and demanding after that, and yet he also showered me with overwhelming care, which was new to me as no one had ever treated me in such a way before. Despite not living in luxury, he gave me this elegant, long-sleeved kimono you see now, and I found my feelings for him grow stronger," she said as a smile formed on her face.

Link didn't know why, but that strange feeling in his chest came back when he saw her smile like that. The look on her face was...something Link wasn't sure how to describe, but she looked much prettier to him in that moment since he'd seen her. However, it didn't last as the smile seemed to turn...sad as she continued.

"Eventually, though, he finally passed away, his wounds having taken its toll on him. It was only later that I learned that the feelings I felt for him were love," her smile slowly fading on her face as she looked down in remembrance.

Link could tell her master meant a lot to her, and to hear him pass away made his heart wrench even more. Much like how he lost the Great Deku Tree years ago...

But that last part also caught his attention. The part about love. Is that what that was? Love? To feel and care strongly about someone? He cared deeply for all his friends as well as the Great Deku Tree. That was why he always fought to protect them. Why he was on this mission in the first place. Did that mean he 'loved' them? What about Princess Ruto when she said she offered her eternal 'love' to him when he met her again after his seven year absence in the Sacred Realm? So did she care deeply about him as well? He was pretty sure she did, especially considering he saved her life. Twice, actually.

And yet...he felt like he was missing something regarding love. Something he wasn't fully understanding or comprehending. It was like it was a piece of a puzzle that he wasn't sure how it fit and he had been getting quite frustrated about it lately. 'Gah! Why didn't I ask Hachibei-sensei about it? I bet he could have helped me with that. And those strange feelings I tend to get around girls lately.'

Setsuka stayed silent for several moments as she reminisced. Then Link noticed her expression change to a…well, a rather hardened look on her face. "Before he passed away, he told me the name of the man whom he had fought to a duel and lost: Mitsurugi Heishiro."

Link saw her face harden more at the sound of the name. It…contrasted her pretty face, Link thought. Like it didn't look suit her at all. Then he took note of the name.

"Mitsurugi Heishiro…" Link said, as if testing the name. He tried to think of possibly hearing it somewhere but came up empty. Although there was that one samurai he fought, though surprisingly neither of them spoke during that whole incident, so he couldn't learn his name. "Doesn't sound familiar. What does he look like?"

"I actually haven't seen him myself. I've asked around in various places. He is often referred to as a 'one-man-army' because of his immense skill. From what I've heard, he is physically toned with long black hair, often in a spiky ponytail and sports a trimmed beard and moustache. He is a samurai with the standard katana as his weapon of choice and often wears samurai armor, sans helmet and mask."

'That sounds a lot like that-'

"The most distinguishing feature is he has a large, round scar on his shoulder. Rumor has it he got it after-"

"I saw him..."

Setsuka blinked, suddenly looking at Link with astonishment after he whispered that. Did she hear that right? "Did you-You say you saw him?"

Link slowly nodded. "I ran into him along a bridge a ways from here...or rather, he ran into me. We were crossing a bridge at the same time. I tried to give him room. But he intentionally moved so as to bump into me. As we got close, he drew his sword to strike. I drew mine to defend and narrowly deflected it...I kind of think he was testing me, now that I think about it. We fought, and I got a cut across the cheek during one of his attacks," he said while pointing to his bandaged cheek.

"While out of position, he charged at me from behind, I gave him a surprise attack to his midsection to disorient him. Then with a little maneuver, I bashed him in the back of the head and launched him into the bridge guardrail headfirst, knocking him out."

Setsuka looked at him in complete astonishment, jaw dropped and all. This boy...not only did he come across the man she had been looking for, but he had _defeated_ him? She looked around and, seeing no one else was listening, she leaned forward again (with Link keeping his eyes up...as hard as he could). "You-You say you _defeated_ him? You defeated the one-man-army Mitsurugi?" she exclaimed, somehow soft enough so no one else overheard.

It was rare for her to be speechless. She could only find herself staring and blinking in disbelief at this boy. If it had been anyone else, she would have said they were just trying to inflate their ego. But this boy, when she looked into his eyes, she could sense no deceit from him.

He was telling the truth.

Link nodded while rubbing the back of his neck at her disbelief. "Well…I think he was holding back. He kept increasing his speed and strength as we continued, so I'm not sure if he ever started going all out or not."

She blinked one more time before shaking her head, her face returning to a more neutral look but still a hint of admiration on her face. "Unbelievable. If anyone else had stated that, I would not have believed them. Even now I'm in disbelief. And yet…I believe you."

Link looked down with a small blush on his face and rubbed the back of his neck again. No matter what praise he got, he always felt somewhat bashful. Setsuka noticed this and gave him a reassuring smile. "No need to be bashful, Link. You should be proud of what you accomplished," she said with praise, which served to only make him more bashful.

"So this bridge you fought him at. Can you tell me where it took place?"

Link was brought out of his thoughts as she looked up at Setsuka who had an expectant look on her face.

Now Link had a dilemma on his hands. From her story and the way she spoke of Mitsurugi, it sounded like she wanted to kill him. While the samurai may have injured her master and he eventually died from it, something about her getting revenge like that didn't sit well with him. He had a similar feeling when she suggested he himself was out for revenge against those who killed his people, and he didn't think it was an accurate description of his overall mission.

It just felt the term was...off, in some way. Like it wasn't right. Either in describing his intentions or the concept of the term...even though in a way it sort of made sense why she would think he was after revenge as well. Now he was starting to regret telling her he met the man she was looking for.

Setsuka noticed his hesitation. Maybe he was still flustered from her earlier praise? "Please, do not keep me in suspense, Link. Where did you last see him?"

She slightly frowned, however, when Link stayed silent. That's odd. "Is something wrong, Link?"

Link looked at her with a concerned look on his face. "Mm, I'm not sure..." he stated, looking off to the side, not sure how to explain.

Now Setsuka was starting to get a little frustrated. After searching for several months now, she finally had a lead in finding the man she had been searching for! But for some reason, the boy was hesitating to share the information he had. 'Hmm...Something must be worrying him to cause him to hesitate like this.'

"I can see something is bothering you, Link. Tell me. What concerns you so?"

Link finally looked back at her, wondering how to approach this. "This man, Mitsurugi…"

"Hai, Link?"

She looked at Link with a mix of curiosity and anxiousness as to what he was trying to say. Her eyes then widen slightly at the look Link was giving as he leaned forward, his elbows on the table with his hands clasped together and chin resting on top of it. Gone was the innocent, curious expression she had been accustomed to. Instead, he had a rather…sharp look in his normally vibrant blue eyes. Not a glare by any means, but…well, she wasn't sure what to make of it. It was such a contrast to the innocence in his eyes that she was used to. It was like he was…looking for something. It was such a strangely captivating look that she dared not look away or even blink at his gaze.

Another flash of lightning and resounding thunder echoed the place as the waitress came back to pick up their remaining dishes. "I hope the meals were delicious. Will there be anything else tonight?" she asked while mainly eyeing Link. To her surprise and confusion, Link had a very tense gaze at the woman who was staring back at him, more out of curiosity it looked like. She looked back and forth between them, unsure of what was going on between them. That was strange. They seemed to be getting along well earlier from what she could tell.

"No. The food was delicious. Arigato," Link replied, briefly softening his gaze with a small smile and nod while looking at the waitress.

She blinked again and looked back and forth between them once more, a little unsure of the situation or if she should say something. "Um, very well. Let me...know if you need anything else," she stated rather timidly before giving a bow and slowly walking away.

Link then turned his attention back to Setsuka with the same expression he had before, neither of them saying a word. Finally, Setsuka broke the silence. "Go on, Link. You were wondering about Mitsurugi?"

Link stayed silent a bit more before taking a deep breath to prepare himself for what he was about to ask. "This man, Mitsurugi. When you find him, are you going to kill him?"

Setsuka stayed silent as she processed his question. Now she think she understood why he was so hesitant. He may have slain that sorcerer, but he was still only twelve, thirteen tomorrow. Death was something he likely was unaccustomed to, as when he fought that Ganondorf that threatened his home some years ago, he said he had defeated him but not killed him, merely imprisoned him. If anything, it may have traumatized him, both to witness the deaths he saw and the sorcerer's at his own hands, even if it was to save lives and avenge those whose lives had been lost. She remembered initially feeling a little uncomfortable about it after her first kill, but she was in her early twenties when that occurred, not twelve, and so wasn't as traumatized as Link probably was and who likely had reservations about such actions.

That also would explain the way he was looking at the dead bodies of those gang members. Even though she couldn't see his face at the time, it sounded logical that was what he was likely thinking. Bearing this in mind, and after a few more tense moments, she finally answered.

"I intend to do what is necessary to avenge my master," she said with a slow nod. A flash of lightning and thunder echoed outside upon her saying that. "Do you…not approve?" she asked slowly.

Why wouldn't he? After all, that's what he was doing in going after Nightmare and Soul Edge, wasn't he? To avenge those whose lives had been lost? Why would he disapprove?

Link looked down, his mouth now being blocked from her view with his hands still clasped together. She had never seen him look so…serious. It was almost as if he was much older than he looked.

He closed his eyes for a bit, thinking of how to approach this. From what Link had seen, people with revenge on their minds also tended to get offended and prone to anger and outbursts more easily.

And ultimately, he did not approve of her intentions. 'Ok, how can I approach this delicately?'

Finally, he opened his eyes and looked up. "Your master. When he told you the name of the one he fought, did he say he wanted you to kill him?"

She mentally raised an eyebrow at how…mature he was acting. Especially compared to his innocent behavior earlier. She found herself mirroring Link's position while tilting her head in confusion. Inside, though, she was getting frustrated, wondering where he was going with this and why he simply won't tell her where Mitsurugi was.

They stayed silent, looking into each other's eyes as if scrutinizing the other before she finally spoke up. "Does it matter if he did or not? He killed the one man who understood me. The one man whom I loved. As such, I intend to avenge him."

Despite the tension he could feel from her, Link did not flinch in the slightest, though he was still racking his brain on how to respond. Link then tilted his head, still keeping his sharp inquisitive gaze she saw earlier before looking down with a slightly softer and confused look. "Hmm...I am…confused," scratching the side of his head for emphasis.

'He isn't the only one,' she thought to herself. She then gently rested and crossed her arms on the table. "What is it you are confused about, Link?"

"Well..." he started before mirroring her position, a tactic his sensei said to use when conversing with someone. "I don't know your master as well as you, but I'm confused on why you're after Mitsurugi if you're master did not specifically state he wanted you to kill him. I mean, I know you cared deeply about him, and I know it must have been...heart-breaking to see him later die from their duel, but I'm not fully understanding why you feel you should avenge him if he himself did not say he wanted you to."

She looked at him in silence for a bit before realization finally came to her.

"You do not approve." She had said it as a statement rather than a question, slowly leaning back and arms now off the table. "You do not approve of my intention of killing Mitsurugi to avenge my master." She said it softly, but the tension was there, along with what hinted to be…disappointment in her voice? Link stayed silent but inside was starting to get nervous. The flash of lightning that followed didn't help as the light reflected on her visage from the flash seemed to give her a more...intimidating appearance, Link thought.

"But... _you_ are intending to destroy this 'Nightmare' who wields Soul Edge, correct?"

Link blinked at that. "Ha-Hai, but-"

"Because _he_ was responsible for killing your people, hai?"

"Well...that is true...but-"

"Therefore, you want revenge for the deaths Soul Edge caused, and so you are hunting him down to avenge them, hai? So why would you not approve of me doing the same for my master? What is there to disapprove? Why should _you_ be allowed to avenge your people but _I_ not be allowed to avenge my master whom I loved? What gives _you_ the right as opposed to me? Because I am a woman?" her voice rising in a challenging tone as she spoke.

"No! I'm not saying we don't have something in common related to our goals, and you being a woman has nothing to do with it. I don't know why you being a woman would have anything to do with it in the first place!" he said the last part a little louder than intended, causing some to look in their direction for a bit. Embarrassed, Link let out a hasty apology to them before calming down and turning his attention back to Setsuka, who still had that tense/disappointed look on her. The thunder and lightning flash against her making her look more intimidating didn't help either.

"Gomen...As I was saying, you being a woman has nothing to do with it. Ultimately, we both want for those who died to be able to rest in peace for the injustice they received, whether by a madman with power or a dueling samurai. I'm just...how do I explain it...?" he trailed off, leaning forward and scratching the side of his face again as he tried to come up with a response.

Now Link _knew_ he was in a bind. She was clearly getting agitated, and if he said the wrong thing to her now, she might get mad enough that they could end up fighting. Whether with words or swords—or both. And he certainly didn't want to fight with someone he just found he could relate to. 'Wow...conversations like this are a lot more intimidating than I thought. Ok, tread carefully, Link...You can do this,' he said to himself, taking a deep breath as he figured out how he wanted to word his next sentence before opening his hands into a calming gesture.

Setsuka, meanwhile, was starting to lose her patience with this boy. She also noticed he seemed to avoid using the words "revenge" or "avenge." But...he so far hasn't been dishonest with her that she could tell. And she also didn't want to get in a fight with someone she found she had a lot more in common with than she expected, and so she let him continue...for now.

"I know what it's like to lose someone close to me. I lost the closest person I had to a father in the forest guardian. Even though I had defeated the curse that was killing him...he said he was doomed before I even started..." he said slowly as he thought back to that day.

Setsuka stayed silent but nodded at that. He had mentioned being raised in a forest with other children, protected by the forest guardian known as "The Great Deku" and how that Ganondorf, whom was eventually imprisoned for it and other similar deeds, had some form of magic that he cursed the Great Deku with. Even though she still had some doubts on the "magic" part, she was also still convinced he was not lying to her, and so she didn't it question it _too_ much. Seeing his sad look, she was reminded how he could relate to her in losing someone like that.

"However, despite the circumstances, he didn't ask for me to avenge him in any way, assuring me I had done everything I could for him and should not be ashamed in any way for not saving his life. Instead...he wanted me to focus on my destiny. To save and protect my land so others don't suffer the same fate as he."

By now, Setsuka was in the same clasped hand position Link was in earlier and a bit calmer, her chin resting on her hands as she processed everything. "But surely you had to have been angered by his death, much like the deaths of those caused by the sorcerer later on. Do you not feel the need to avenge them? Surely, that is what you are doing in going after Nightmare, are you not? To avenge those he killed?"

The idea of not avenging a lost loved one was just so...foreign to her, and with all the lives lost in his land, she couldn't understand how Link could _not_ have revenge on his mind.

Seeing progress being made, Link and Setsuka now mirrored the same position as the other. "I won't deny I'm not upset at what Ganondorf did to him or what Nightmare and Soul Edge did in attacking and killing everyone. Far from it. Like you, I intend to do whatever is necessary to accomplish my goal...But what's more important to me than revenge is protecting everyone I care about—so they don't suffer the same fate like their fallen brethren. _That's_ what the Great Deku wanted me to do when he sent me on first quest to save my home, and so that's what I'm doing now in going after Nightmare."

He paused for a bit, letting his reasoning sink in for a bit. Now that he thought about it, this is probably the most he ever spoke at tone time. Mentally shaking that off, he continued.

"Ultimately, my point is despite the fact he was dying from the actions of another, he did not say he wanted me to avenge him in any way or focus on revenge in general; instead, he wanted me to perform a far more important task than simple vengeance that involved _protecting_ people rather than killing people. Likewise, if your master did not specifically state he wanted you to avenge him, I believe he wanted you to do something else as well...Maybe not necessarily the same thing as me, but something just as important to him, nonetheless."

Setsuka stayed silent as she reflected on his words. So this Great Deku said he wanted Link to protect others so they don't suffer the same fate as those who perished. Fair enough. And it was a noble goal as well. And yet still...

"Perhaps...But in killing those responsible for their deaths, are you not also protecting your people as well? How is avenging your people in such a way not the same as protecting them as well? By killing the threat to your people, you are thereby protecting them, are you not? I am sorry, Link, but I am not finding any difference in your goals or mine or the methods thereof. So...are you going to tell me where you last saw Mitsurugi or not?" she stated with finality, not wanting to discuss it any further.

Link frowned in disappointment. He thought maybe he had explained that well enough to get her to think on her logic, but she was still not convinced. And now he wasn't sure what she might do if he didn't tell her as it looked like she was out of patience and didn't want to discuss it any more. 'Goddesses, this is so much more difficult than I thought! How do I respond here!?'

He was about at his wits end when the proverbial light bulb (or so he heard the expression in Termina) lit up in his head.

"How about this: Allow me to make one last argument. If, after listening to my reasoning you are still not convinced about my views on revenge, I promise to tell you where I last saw him. Deal?"

Setsuka gave him a neutral expression. The boy seemed so adamant on convincing her that she was wrong in her views of revenge, despite the fact his reasons for stating otherwise only _confirmed_ her viewpoints. Just why was he so set on trying to convince her otherwise? But, from what she knew of him, Link looked to be a man (err, boy) of his word, and if she had just one more argument to listen to in order to get the information needed, so be it. "Deal."

Smiling in appreciation, Link began. "There _is_ actually one major difference between me protecting others as opposed to avenging others, one I think will be able to truly show the difference between the two."

"Is that so? And what would that be, exactly?" she asked skeptically while raising an eyebrow. He seemed a lot more sure of himself when he said that.

"Say I succeed in destroying Nightmare and Soul Edge. My people and my land are free from any future threats from it and they can all now live in peace. Then what happens? Then what would I do?"

She thought about it for a minute, not entirely sure what he was getting at, but answered nonetheless. "I would imagine you would head home and let them know you were successful in your mission."

"True. And then what after that?"

She tilted her head at that in confusion. "I'm...not sure I follow."

Aha! Just as he thought! "Well, I would then keep an eye out for any threats that may arise in the future, whatever or whenever it may be. Soul Edge wasn't the first to threaten my, home, and it certainly won't be the last."

"Mmm...alright. I see the logic in that. But I fail to see how that is relevant."

"Well, say you succeed in killing Mitsurugi. You have avenged your master and killed the one responsible for his death. Then what happens? What do you do next?"

"Well, I would then go...home..."

Link internally smiled, seeing he was getting somewhere when she hesitated at the end. "That makes sense. And _then_ what would you do when you got home after avenging him?"

"I would-" she started, only to blink as nothing more came out. She looked off to the side, trying to come up with a response. She opened her mouth again...and nothing came out. This occurred multiple times before she found herself constantly changing her thinking her posture to come up with a response, only to come up with nothing. What _did_ she plan on doing next? What came after avenging someone? What did one do after that? For the first time in their little debate, she didn't have an answer or rebuttal.

"I...don't...know."

Link stayed silent and waited patiently as his logic seemed to start sinking in. By taking a less confrontational approach like his sensei taught him and not reply to hostility _with_ hostility, it helps avoid physical confrontation when in an intense, heated conversation with someone who will explode with rage if they feel provoked or challenged in even the slightest way—whether intentional or not.

And by admitting confusion on an issue, it helps lessen the hostility by the other party and instead encourages that other party to help them to understand their point of view, but with politeness instead of with anger or threats—or worse, swords or fists. And when asked the right question in that lessened hostility and in the right tone and at the right time, chances are better that the other party will suddenly stop when a hole is poked in their argument that they can't immediately explain, of which they are then forced to come up with an explanation that doesn't contradict their logic—usually to no avail. That, in turn, helps the two parties come to an understanding much easier than before, and then come to an agreement with both sides feeling satisfied—or at least more satisfied than when they started.

He had to admit, his sensei was quite the diplomat, who explained such diplomacy and negotiation skills were necessary when working with various clients who hired the Fu-Ma clan for their services, as some clients were more difficult to work with than others. Or when forced to work with other ninja clans for one reason or another and have to negotiate a truce in some way. He still had yet to see or hear of other clans in the land, now that he thought about it.

Regardless, it looked like he finally get her to truly think of her reasons for going after Mitsurugi. Maybe now she can see that her reasons were flawed, and that revenge was not the answer. Or at least not what her master likely wanted for her. Then maybe-

"Um, excuse me."

The two were broken from their thoughts as they saw the waitress Ayane standing over them. "M-My apologies for interrupting, but it is getting late and my oyabun was wondering if you had made your decision on the two of you staying tonight or not?"

Oh yeah, they had forgotten about that. They looked around and saw many of the patrons had left or gone up to their rooms. Had they been talking that long? They then took a glance outside. It was now dark outside, probably after 21:00 by now ( **A/N: After 9:00pm** — **not sure how they measured time back then** ), and it appeared to still be raining pretty hard. Another loud crash of thunder could be heard as well as if to emphasize that point. They looked back at each other, sharing a look between them.

Link wasn't sure on her thoughts, especially with the considerably...tense conversation they'd been having recently. But given how late it was and the still bad weather out, he felt alright spending the night in the same room with her, especially now that it seemed he got through to her...unless she was still upset he didn't approve?

"We will both be staying for the night," Setsuka responded. Guess not, Link thought before nodding to her as well.

A slight look of disappointment appeared on her face before it vanished as quickly as it came. "Very well. The room is on the third floor, room 12. Are you ready to go now?"

They briefly look at each other before nodding to her. "Very good. Could you follow me, please?" she stated as she lit a candelabra she was holding to take upstairs with.

Setsuka didn't miss the look of disappointment she gave when they stated they would be staying together. Strange. What was that about? Was she expecting one of them to decline? Or-

"Something wrong, Setsuka?"

She blinked in surprise, looking back at Link who had that now familiar curious, innocent look on his face. 'Still oblivious,' she chuckled to herself before shaking her head.

"No, Link. Nothing is wrong. Shall we go to our room?" she asked, Link nodding in reply. They had been sitting for a while, so it was good to at least stretch a bit. As they stood up to do just that, Link once again widened and quickly averted his eyes when he saw Setsuka stretch her arms straight up...causing her chest to stick out more.

Ayane noticed this and was a bit jealous at that, especially considering that woman's much larger chest. She did, however, see the boy Link (she knew his name now!), quickly look away when his eyes met that woman's chest, which made her smile a bit. 'So he _is_ a gentleman, in addition to being _very_ cute,' she added while letting out a slight blush. After Setsuka grabbed her umbrella sword, the two of them started following her up the stairs.

They soon found themselves in front of room 12, which was at the end of the hallway. She opened the door with her key before handing it to them and lighting some candles in the room and showing them their provisions. "Here is your room key. Will there be anything else?" she asked after giving Link the key (naturally).

"No, that will be all. Arigato," Setsuka replied with a small bow.

Before Ayane exited, a thought came to him as he wondered what to do now. He remembered from experience how some cultures felt it was customary to tip someone for service, and in other cultures it was frowned upon. Was it customary or frowned upon here? As he thought about what to do, he decided to follow his sensei's advice in such situations. _'When in doubt, err on the side of caution_.'

Ayane was confused when she saw Link suddenly started searching for something inside of his tunic. Her eyes then widened in surprise when he pulled out two green gems and held them out to her, which also surprised Setsuka a bit and made her realize she never asked how many he had on him. But what was he doing? Was he...

"For the delicious meals, and the service. Domo arigato, Ayane. Hope you have a goodnight."

Now Ayane wasn't sure what to do. It was clear he was tipping her. The trouble was it was usually considered taboo or frowned upon in this land with rare exceptions. Seeing he was a foreigner, he probably wasn't _aware_ it was a frowned upon custom.

But at the same time...her family wasn't doing well financially, hence why she was working for such a demanding and greedy oyabun. And chances are he gave some of those gems to her oyabun for the room AND meals. And based on her oyabun's reactions, they were real and _very_ valuable. It was no wonder why he acted they way he did earlier.

She stayed still, debating what course of action to take as she looked between the gems and Link. She looked to the side at the other woman, who merely shrugged while setting down her umbrella. No help there. Suddenly, her eyes widened as she felt him gently wrap her fingers around the gems. She blushed a deep red, feeling the boy's hands over hers.

He was holding her hand! With _both_ hands! The cute boy Link was holding her hand! They felt so...nice, she thought.

"It is alright, Ayane. I have no need for them and am well off without them. Go on. You can have them," he said with a gentle voice before giving her hand a gentle squeeze before releasing it, which made her heart beat faster. And he said her name! Again! She was sure her cheeks were blushing a bright red crimson by now.

Suddenly acting on instinct, she leaned over and gave him a long, deep kiss against his cheek.

Now _Link_ was blushing a bright red...not that he didn't mind the kiss. In fact, he felt himself enjoying it...much more than he was expecting! So wrapped up in it he almost missed the quick "Arigato" she stated to him before she quickly exited and shut the door. "Uh...you're welcome," he sputtered out, still standing frozen in place.

Setsuka, meanwhile, was smirking in amusement as the boy quietly locked the door, a bit in a daze. Oh, she was going to have fun teasing him about that.

* * *

The desk clerk had returned from the kitchen, closing it up for the night as he saw Ayane come back down—with neither the gaijin boy or woman. "So they are going to spend the night together after all? She agreed to share a room with him?" he asked with a snicker.

"Yeah…" she sighed with a mix of whimsy and awe. "What a lucky girl…"

He blinked a bit before looking at her in confusion, who still had that whimsical look on her face as she started sweeping the floors before finally shaking his head.

Obviously, he was thinking the other way around.

* * *

 **A/N: Wow, that was a lot longer than I was expecting. My intent was to add diplomacy in Link's arsenal of skills, as I figured he would _have_ to have at least some level of skill with it for when he gets into disputes with others later on. But...I think I added more detail than was necessary in this chapter. I worked on this for weeks and still not entirely satisfied with the execution. Maybe I'll rework this later.**

 **In the meantime, anyone catch the movie reference in Ayane's last line? :)**

 **The history on Setsuka did not specifically state if she had killed anyone prior to SC III, but I'm treating it as if she had at some point in her life. To me it would make sense, as it is never implied she showed any hesitation in her mission to kill Mitsurugi, which in turn implies she likely had killed before.**

 **From what I could gather, in those times such physical gestures like Link putting her hand over hers were taboos in feudal era Japan, and tipping I know is not practiced there today except for like translators and one or two other rare exceptions, so I assumed it would be like that in feudal Japan as well.**

 **In addition, slurping (most) noodles is actually considered appropriate etiquette compared to like the US where it is usually impolite (particularly with pasta).**

 ** **So, they ultimately decided to share the room. How will THAT go? What will they do? Will they still be at a disagreement in their philosophies? Will they argue? Will they fight then? Or will something ELSE happen?****

 **Find out next time!**

 **For now, this is Agent Ghost-Writer 000 signing off.**


	9. Chapter 9 - Letting Go

**.**

This is a sentence. - Narration. No character speaking or thinking.

"This is a sentence." - Character speaking out loud.

'This is a sentence.' - Character speaking in his/her head.

This _is_ a sentence. - Emphasis placed on the italic word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

This IS a sentence. - Same as with the single italic, just a variation of expressing the emphasis.

 _This is a sentence. -_ All italics means the event is happening in a flashback of which I would give a quick note prior saying a flashback is occurring.

 _This_ is _a sentence_. - During a flashback, emphasis placed in the normal text word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

 **.**

 **"Hai" - Yes**

 **"Arigato" - Thank you**

 **"Domo-arigato" - Thank you very much**

 **"-kun" - A suffix added to a name to show deep affection towards someone. Usually used to address a male.**

 **"-chan" - A** **suffix added to a name to show deep affection towards someone. Usually used to address a female.**

 **"Daimyo" - Feudal Lord**

 **I do not own The Legend of Zelda or Soul Calibur.**

* * *

 **Chapter 9 – Letting Go**

"Well now, seems _someone_ is in a good mood," Setsuka commented at Link's dazed look, which brought him back to reality and made him look away and blush even more, causing her to let out another giggle. "Seems you made quite an impression on her. Though, you do realize tipping isn't a common custom here?"

"Yeah...though only after offering it to her. I was taught when in doubt, err on the side of caution. When she hesitated, I knew that was the case, but I decided to just let her keep them anyway. Like I said, I have more than enough, so I had no problem giving them to her, though...I wasn't expecting her to do _that_ ," he said shyly at the end.

"Maybe if you gave her another gem she'll give you another one?" she commented with another laugh, causing Link to away in embarrassment again. Oh yes, teasing him was so much fun!

"Which reminds me...Just how many do you have to be willing to give them up so easily? Given the desk clerk's reactions, they must be very rare."

"Well...actually they're our currency back home. Everyone has Rupees, as they're called, and so they're not rare by any means. And...I have plenty, but I don't really want to say how much," he added slowly.

Seeing his hesitance, she nodded. "I understand. You would not want to have any thieves after you. I promise not to tell anyone," she said while holding a hand up as if taking an oath. Still...those gems are their regular currency? If that's true, he could probably be the richest person on the planet!

Link gave an appreciated smile as they took a look at the room for the first time. The room was...small. It was maybe twelve by ten feet at most with a single window and blinds and a ceiling just a little over six feet high. To the side was a mirror and a small basin to wash up and a fold-up shade to change behind. The floor-mats did not feel very soft, neither did the bedding provisions when they tested them. Cracks at various places on the wall, ceiling, and floor indicated lack of maintenance. Plus...did the floor dip slightly? Yep. The floor in the room was dipped slightly in multiple places. 'Why am I not surprised?,' Setsuka thought. That was likely the reason the room was available—everyone else who saw it saw how poor it was and so no one was willing to take it.

The two looked at each other with a frown before sighing, neither of which were happy with the provisions. Still...at least they had a room. Reluctantly, they started getting ready for bed as Setsuka went to change into her nightgown behind the shade, of which she could still see just over it while standing upright as she was taller than most others in the country **(A/N: She is 5' 6", which back then was pretty tall, especially for women.)** While bending down to change, she thought she heard Link say something, but decided to ignore it as it sounded like he was saying something to himself. After standing back up moments later, she caught a glimpse of Link and froze slightly, blinking in confusion.

Rather than wearing the green tunic and hat she had seen him in previously, they were now blue. 'How did he change so fast? I didn't even hear him change!'

Mentally shaking that off, she finished changing and they both sat down to try to get comfortable on the uncomfortable floor. She looked to the side and saw his sword and shield by his bed, the latter having a design she was unfamiliar with but did feature a familiar symbol of three triangles joined together into one large triangle, much like a family crest she had seen somewhere. Was he affiliated with them in some way?

Then she got a better look at the boomerang she saw earlier. It was an orange color with a pair of green stripes near the edges and a ruby at the very center of the boomerang where the points intersected. She still thought it was an unusual choice of a weapon, but then again that may have been the point—who would expect to see such a weapon way out here? Certainly not that one assailant, she thought to herself before shaking her head of that memory. She was definitely going to up her training now. However...

Her thoughts then shifted back to their previous conversation. She still hadn't answered Link's question of what she would do after avenging her master. So focused on avenging him, she never once thought what she would do afterwards. And now that she was...she still had absolutely no clue. Go back to the dojo? Then what? Live alone there the rest of her life? Just sit there and do nothing all day? She could train herself while there, but then...what would she be training for? Just to pass the time?...until she slowly died to the effects of time? By then, her money would have been gone long before then. She could be a bodyguard like her master. But then...who would she be avenging? Or protecting, as Link called it? Or...were they different after all?

"Well, should we turn in for the night?"

Her thoughts were interrupted when she heard Link speak and saw he had extinguished a number of candles, leaving only a few in front and behind them. She looked at him for a bit before replying.

"Just one question before we do, Link."

"Um...alright. What is it, Setsuka?" he asked slowly.

"Just why are you so determined in trying to convince me not to pursue Mitsurugi? What do you gain from it?"

Link stood still, thinking about it for a minute before deciding to sit down next to her to reply to such a serious question. "Well...I worry that by going down such a dark path, it may just lead to further pain and darkness. Not just for you, but for your master as well. That you'll feel...empty inside upon avenging him—if that's what he even wanted you to do in the first place. I worry that in trying to avenge him, it won't make him rest in peace but instead roll over in his grave. That's something I always worry about doing—that I'll do something that would disappoint everyone back home, whether intentional or not. Or when I think I'm doing something right, I'm instead doing the exact opposite without even realizing it. _That's_ probably what worries me most here—that by thinking avenging him is the right thing to do when there's a chance it's the _last_ thing he would want you do. Especially when he did not specifically state that was what he wanted you to do after he was gone."

Setsuka stayed silent at that. Had this been earlier, she would have lashed out at telling her the folly of avenging a lost loved one, but now...his words were starting to make her think back on her reasoning as she looked back down in thought.

"Or if nothing else," Link continued, getting her attention again, "consider my reasons to be simply me looking after a friend and making sure my friend was sure of her reasons in going after someone for revenge before doing anything she might regret."

"You...consider me a friend? Why?"

"Well, we had an enjoyable dinner and conversations together, we trusted each other enough to share information about ourselves we normally wouldn't share with others, and we were willing to share a room together despite any...disagreements we may have. But just because there are differences in opinion doesn't mean there can't be friendship between us, so yeah. I would consider us friends."

Setsuka wasn't sure what to say to that. He said it so...candidly. Matter of fact. Like it was the most obvious thing in the world. She mainly agreed to sharing a room with him in hopes to still get the information out of him. Plus, it would have been hypocritical of her to make him look for another inn in heavy rain like that, a room he likely would not have been able to find. She would have been like those who mistreated her in the past had she done that to him. But the way he spoke about them being friends, it was just...

"I...don't know what to say. I've...never had a friend before."

"Well, you can just consider me your first friend then," he stated with a bright smile while holding out a hand as if ready to shake hands with her.

Setsuka looked at his outstretched hand, her mind in a whirl at everything he told her, especially of them being friends. Friends...yet another thing she never had growing up and thought she'd never had (and after meeting her master, thought she'd never needed). But when she thought about it now, the thought of her and Link being friends sounded...nice.

Slowly and tentatively, she extended a hand and the two gently shook hands, promptly Link to give a bright smile that Setsuka found she couldn't help but smile in return.

After a few moments of silence, Setusuka spoke. "Link...I appreciate you looking after me and I appreciate your honesty towards me in our...conversations. I am still intending to look for Mitsurugi. However..."

Link stayed neutral as she trailed off. At first he was disappointed in hearing of her still going after her, but felt a glimmer of hope at that last part.

"Your words have...brought some details that have come to my attention that I hadn't thought of before, and so I will think over what you have said. I cannot promise anything, but by morning, I hope to have worked everything out. If in the morning my mind is not changed, will you keep your word and tell me where you last saw him?"

"...Hai. Like I said, I give you my word. And I never go back on it," making her nod in reply.

"Very well, then. Goodnight, Link."

"Goodnight, Setsuka."

The two then blew out the remaining candles before going to bed (as comfortably as they could). Setsuka noticed he kept his cap on, but said nothing as she'd seen others do the same. Maybe blue was a nightcap for him?

Whereas Link turned over and went to sleep, Setsuka was still thinking back on everything Link had said. She still hadn't come up with an answer of what she would do after avenging her master. Everything she thought of, nothing seemed to fit that showed avenging and protecting someone were one and the same as she had argued previously.

She stayed up for what seemed like hours when in fact she was up for just one. Finally, she decided to try falling asleep, hoping by morning she will be more sure of herself and find the answer she was looking for. However, it wasn't long after falling asleep that she started tossing and turning as she dreamt a...less than peaceful dream...

* * *

 _(dream sequence)_

 _Setsuka was engaged in a fierce duel with whom she knew as Mitsurugi. She was breathing heavily and had cuts and slashes across her body and kimono. Her opponent had more damaging wounds, of which Setsuka had just added another to his arm and kicked him to the ground, the combined attacks forcing him to drop his sword. As she looked at him, she noticed she had delivered the exact same wounds to him as when she saw her master after her long trip._

 _'How appropriate,' she thought. The same wounds inflicted upon her master were now inflicted on his killer. She then poised her blade over his heart._

 _"For my master," she stated before plunging it straight through his heart. His eyes convulsed in pain from the blow as he looked down at his injury._

 _But when he looked up at her, his face had changed. Instead of Mitsurugi it was now..._

 _"Master!?" she recoiled in horror upon seeing she had impaled her master, dropping her sword in the process. "No! Master! I-I thought you were Mitsurugi! He was just here! Where_ you _were! I-"_

 _"Setsuka..." he breathed out slowly, but it was his eyes that caught her attention. They were...saddened. One of deep hurt and pain. As if his very soul had been wounded. As if he was saying she had failed him before he suddenly went limp._

 _"Master! No! Please...don't go. NO! I'm sorry master...I-"_

 _"Look! There she is!"_

 _Surprised, she turned around and saw a mob of angry villagers approaching her. Suddenly, she looked at herself and found herself now as a child, just like how she was on the streets. In place of her bright kimono were her tattered clothes from before._

 _"She killed him! She killed the daimyo's bodyguard!"_

 _"I knew that gaijin was trouble!"_

 _"Kill her! Don't let her escape!"_

 _Filled with fear, she started running away as fast as she could. She tried turning into an alley, only to face another mob and turned another way. Every time she turned another direction, a mob was there, each more numerous than the last. Finally, she turned a corner, only to widen her eyes in terror as it led to a dead end. She turned around again, back against the wall as she faced the mob again._

 _"We have the gaijin now!"_

 _"It's time to make her pay!"_

 _"Alright everyone! CHARGE!"_

 _"FOR THE DAIMYO!"_

 _"DIE GAIJIN!"_

 _They charged forward, sword-first while others raised their clubs overhead. They jumped and descended on her at once, their dark shadows closing all around her. Just as they were about to make contact, she screamed in terror..._

 _(dream sequence end)_

* * *

"AHHHHH!"

Link woke with a start. He looked around, instinctively grabbing his sword—only to stop at seeing Setsuka. She looked in shock, breathing heavily and sweating as well. "Setsuka? Are you alright?"

She looked at him, then around the room for a bit before letting out a sigh of relief, calming down slightly. "Just a dream...It was just a dream."

Though she said it more to herself than to him, Link noticed. "Nightmare?"

She looked back at him, staying silent for a bit before reluctantly nodding.

Seeing she was a little calmer, he sheathed his sword before sitting back down next to her. "Want to talk about it?"

She looked at him for a bit, seeing his concern for her, but nonetheless shook her head. "No...I am fine. Just...the weather I guess. Go back to sleep, Link. I am fine. Really."

Having had nightmares before, he knew the feeling of how difficult it was to talk about them and so decided to not push the issue. "...Alright, Setsuka. But if you ever want to talk about it, I'm right here," he said before giving a reassuring smile.

"Arigato, Link. I appreciate it."

The two then went back to sleep—or at least tried to. Setsuka couldn't stop thinking about her dream, wondering why she would have dreamed something like that. She hadn't had nightmares for years...not since before meeting her master.

Link, meanwhile, couldn't help but worry about her. He had nightmares in the past and knew how impactful they could be. Case in point, his nightmare of seeing Ganondorf for the first time and then seeing him for real in nearly the exact same way as he saw him in his dream.

Deciding to do something about it, he sat up and pulled out his Ocarina from his tunic and blew a soft note to get her attention. "Link?"

"Sometimes music helps people fall asleep. Thought maybe I could help...if that's alright," he said timidly.

She looked at the instrument in question, not familiar with its design. "What is it, exactly?"

"It's called an ocarina. It was another gift from the Royal Family. Music is an important part of our culture, some claiming it has magical properties in how it can help soothe a person's soul."

She looked back at Link. At first she was about to say no, but when she saw the worried look on his face, she found herself unable to do so. "Ha-Hai. That would be alright," before laying her head back down, internally commenting to herself how one can add musical talent to his arsenal of skills as he started to play.

She listened to what appeared to be a lullaby of some kind. It was very peaceful, she thought, enough for her to close her eyes as she listened to the first playthrough. Link played the song a second time, and soon she found herself drifting away to sleep.

Satisfied at seeing her sleeping once more, he laid back to sleep himself. However, it was only a few minutes later he heard her stirring again. Her face had a pained look on it and was breathing more rapidly. Seeing she was having a nightmare again, he realized Zelda's Lullaby didn't seem to do enough. Fortunately, he knew of another song that just might work. He started playing again, only a much different tune.

Whereas Zelda's Lullaby that he played earlier was a soft and peaceful tune, this one felt more...somber. Melancholy. Like it had a touch of sadness to it that almost made one want to cry. And yet...it gave a feeling of hope. That feeling that despite all the pain and sadness one felt, everything would be alright in the end. The feeling that this too shall pass. That was the effect of the Song of Healing.

He made a mental note to thank that Happy Mask Salesman again. The song helped turn him back to normal when Majora's Mask cursed him by turning him into a Deku Sprout, then used the song to help ease the pain of spirits he encountered in Termina who had not yet departed to the afterlife.

He played it twice, and it seemed to have the desired effect as Setsuka seemed to have calmed down, no longer tossing and turning or breathing heavily. She actually seemed...to be at peace, a small smile on her face as she slept.

Seeing her smile brought one on Link's face as well as he put away his ocarina and laid back down. "Goodnight...Setsuka-chan."

Just before closing his eyes, he could have sworn she smiled more when he said that before ignoring it and drifting off to sleep himself.

* * *

The sunlight started peeking through the window, which caused Link to stir at the light starting to shine on him. He let out a yawn, not wanting to get up yet as he nuzzled his face back down on his pillows to get his face out of the sunlight. Wait...since when did he have two pillows to sleep on? And did he hear a...moan?

He slowly opened his eyes in confusion, thinking he was laying on his stomach as he often slept, only to freeze in place at what he was looking at.

He was definitely NOT sleeping on his stomach, but rather his side. And in his face was definitely NOT a pillow, but rather Setsuka's very _ample_ (and partially clothed) chest. And he found Setsuka had draped an arm around him, a hand pressed on the back of his head as she laid on her side. He slowly looked up in terror, wondering what her reaction was to all this...only to see she was still asleep, although Link wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing. Did she move closer to him in her sleep? And then drape an arm around him?

Suddenly, Link was having thoughts of deja vu (as he heard someone from Termina call it), as he thought back to how he saved Cremia at Romani Ranch during a three-day sequence in Termina. The first time he helped her, she rewarded him with Romani's Mask that let him enter a tavern in Clocktown. He then wondered what would happen if he helped her a second time after already having the mask. He did so, and when she saw he already had Romani's Mask, she did indeed reward him with something different...by hugging him—except she had hugged him while standing straight up as opposed to bending down to hug him. And with their height difference, his head reached right up to her chest—and she had pressed his head straight into her (clothed) chest. Firmly. For several minutes...and pressed harder as time went on.

At first he was shocked, and slightly scared as he heard women tended to hurt guys who did that to them...but since _she_ had initiated it, that thought soon faded away and he shortly found himself relaxing into it. And he found it...very enjoyable. Check that. VERY, very enjoyable. So much so, he found himself thinking he could get quite used to it! Apparently as long as the girl initiated, it was alright? That was what he chalked it up to, but he didn't want to push his luck.

He can remember hearing Cremia's intense breathing and soft moaning sounds as she did so, and for some reason he had felt a considerable growth in his shorts from it all, though he wasn't sure why. After several minutes, she had finally stopped, with a very pleased look on her face—which for some reason, despite outwardly having a red and surprised look on his face, he also felt a sense of pride and satisfaction he wasn't sure how to describe or explain.

Now he found himself in the exact same scenario with Setsuka—only she was doing it in her sleep. And her chest was also much larger than Cremia's. And firmer...yet softer...and more exposed-

'Gah! Get your head of the gutter, Link!'

He shook his head at that thought, only to realize his mistake as he heard Setsuka moan at that action and press his face in her chest more. He froze again, both at the pleasure of it...and the terror of expecting her to wake up with an angry look on her face. He (awkwardly) looked up and saw she still had her eyes closed, albeit with a rather pleased smile on her face.

'Oh goddesses...I don't know whether I should feel good or bad right now. I so hope I can get out of this alive. Ok...maybe if I slowly back up, I can get out of her grip.' As soon as he thought that, he felt a part of him ask if he even WANTED to get out of this and rather stay as they were and just enjoy it. Wait...where did that thought come!?

Shaking his head (mentally this time), he very slowly tried pulling his head back while gently pushing his arms off her, only to hear what sounded like a small whine come from her and she pushed him back into her chest, causing her to suck in a deep breath and breathe out a soft moan in the process.

That almost had Link let out a moan himself, surprising himself at that thought, but that feeling was quickly followed by terror as he now worked harder to get out of her grip, trying to duck down to hopefully escape that way—except the more he tried to back away, the more she pulled him closer and harder to her chest. It didn't help (or did it?) that their combined actions were unintentionally causing Link's face to rub against her cleavage, and his downward motion causing more cleavage to be exposed, albeit not yet revealing certain parts of her chest.

'I am _so_ going to die, I just know it...even though it kind of feels like heaven as it is...Gah! Knock it off, Link!'

After what seemed like an eternity (to Link), he finally (yet for some reason with a slight bit of reluctance) broke free of her grip, turning over in the process into his blanket and froze in terror as he heard Setsuka appear to be waking up.

'Maybe if I stay still, she won't think anything happened...I sure hope not,' he thought fearfully...and trying to keep down a certain growth below his waist, which he was taught was a no-no to show to anyone, clothed or not. Not an easy task given the recent "incident" was fresh in his mind (why such an incident would cause it to grow to begin with, he didn't know).

Setsuka, meanwhile, blinked a bit as she gathered her surroundings. She found herself almost right next to Link, which surprised her as she was sure they were a couple feet apart at least. She looked at Link who was turned over facing the other direction. 'Did I move closer to him in my sleep? Or did he?'

Seeing him appear to still be asleep, she sat up and stretched her arms up a bit, before letting out a sigh of content. Strange. She felt a lot more...energized than she expected and was feeling really good for some reason. Check that. REALLY, really good. Why was that? Not that she was complaining or anything. Still, it made her wonder.

She looked down and saw her sleepwear was loosened, exposing much more cleavage than intended. 'Just like during dinner. Only this time, Link did not get a view of it,' she added with a slight giggle. She thought maybe of teasing him about that later just to see his reaction. She would likely get a good laugh out of that. **(A/N: Oh, if she only knew...)**

She then thought back to last night and couldn't help but let out a soft and relieved smile at what she had dreamt.

* * *

( _dream sequence_ )

 _Her dream was like before. She found herself cornered in an alley, surrounded by an angry mob ready to pounce and attack her. Just as they all jumped and descended upon her, a bright light suddenly appeared behind them, causing them to vanish without a trace._

 _Setsuka looked around, confused as to where they went, until she saw a figure approaching from the light. He approached her, but she did not move back in fear. He stopped right in front of her, and she noticed he was a couple feet taller than her. He held out a hand, with a warm smile on his face, and for some reason...she no longer felt scared. Hesitantly, she took his hand, and soon realized she was now a young child again._

 _They walked together to where the light was emanating. The image soon shifted to a young Setsuka training under this man, practicing with a sword while he watched her progress. The image shifted to the two of them in a field of flowers, where the man would later name her Setsuka for the first time. It shifted again to when she first received the kimono she had with her today. She smiled and twirled around in her kimono in absolute wonder and joy._

 _Finally, it shifted once more to the two of them. This time, the man, by this point around his early to mid-fifties, lay on his bed, weakened and dying. His wounds from his duel a few years ago were finally taking its toll. A saddened Setsuka, wearing the kimono he had bought her, knelt down beside him._

 _He placed a hand on her cheek."You have grown into such a beautiful woman, my little snowflake."_

 _She remained silent but placed her hand over his, a sad smile on her face when he said that._

 _"Setsuka, my little snowflake. I know my time is near, but do not weep for me, for death is but a natural part of life." He coughed a few times, trying to regain his breath before finally settling down._

 _"Before I die, let me impart my last words of wisdom onto you:_

 _"I did not teach you this art for the purpose of revenge. One who lives by the sword harbors no regret. That night, when I dueled that man that led to my defeat. The intenseness of that fight. The adrenaline. The feeling of being pushed to my absolute limit. It was the most exciting moment of my life! Even though I lost…" He breathed a sigh, reminiscing in his mind of that famous duel. He then coughed a little more, catching his breath again._

 _"Heishiro Mitsurugi. Such a powerful fighter, well-earned of his reputation as the one-man-army," he breathed out in admiration, closing his eyes as he pictured the man in his mind again._

 _'Finally, he has a name. Heishiro Mitsurugi,' Setsuka thought. She found it strange that her master held him in such high regard despite how he was the one that gave him the injuries that eventually had led to his death. Why is that? Why show such admiration to the one who killed you?_

 _Eyes still closed, he continued. "I have no regrets from my dueling him, even though it eventually led to my death. Nor do I harbor any hard feelings towards him. And neither should you, for we both fought by choice and were willing to accept the risks thereof. As such, do not hold any hate for him. Instead, carry on the art I taught you and live your life the way you want to, unbound by hate or fear."_

 _He opened his eyes at Setsuka and saw she had a look of deep thought on her face. What he didn't realize was that she had spaced out and did not hear that last part, only focusing on the name of his killer. Instead, he misinterpreted it as her thinking on his stating not hate Mitsurugi despite what he had done and instead to live freely the way she wanted to._

 _"Be strong for me, my little snowflake," he said, breaking her from her thoughts before he started coughing more heavily. He could feel his time running short. With his last ounce of strength, he placed his hand on her cheek again, and she held onto it again like before. "Setsuka, be always brave."_

 _With that, he closed his eyes and breathed his last._

* * *

(Present)

A stray tear falling from her face that she quickly wiped away. She saw her pillow had wet marks on them, indicating she had indeed cried in the middle of the night—the first tears she had cried since her master was alive. She wasn't sure how, or why, but she finally remembered everything her master had said to her that night, and what he ultimately wanted her to do after he passed on. For the first time, she felt truly happy in her life.

"Link? You awake?" she heard him mutter something before slowly raising his head up and flopping it back down, causing her to giggle.

"Come on, now. Time to get up!" she said rather cheerfully, surprising herself a little at that. He turned over, blinking a bit at the light. He had what looked to be a sleepy/confused look on his face, which only caused her to smile more at how cute he looked.

"Link. I have something to tell you."

"Um...alright, what is it?" he asked timidly, inwardly hoping she didn't find out what happened (and his acting didn't ward any suspicions to what happened earlier).

"I do not know how, but during the night, I suddenly remembered what I had forgotten."

Forgotten? That was something Link wasn't expecting to hear. "Forgot what? What did you forget?"

"What my master told me the day he died."

Now Link had his full attention towards her as he sat straight up. He had been wondering about that for some time now. "I see. So...what did he say?"

"I…can't explain how, but I think that song you played helped trigger a memory I had somehow forgotten…maybe I had suppressed it without realizing it because I was so focused on revenge. He told me not to hold any hate for the man he fought, Mitsurugi, as the master did not hate him even though he lost. Instead, he said to carry on his art and live my life the way I want to, without fear or hate.

"I remember waking up in the night and feeling so ashamed of myself. You were right. I had been doing the exact opposite of what my master wanted this whole time after he died. If I had continued on as I was, I would not have avenged his death…he just would have been rolling in his grave," she said softly, letting a sigh at that.

"And so, I have decided to abandon my quest for revenge. Domo-arigato, Link-kun," she stated with a deep bow towards the surprised Link and a light blush on her face. She didn't know why she added the "-kun" at the end, even surprising herself after she said it, hence her light blush.

Link sat still as he watched her before a big (and relieved) smile adorned his face. He was worried she was still going to go after him but now he couldn't help but be happy at the sudden turn of events. It's times like this that just made Link feel all warm and fuzzy when he helped someone like this. 'Helping people just feels good!' he thought to himself.

"You're welcome, Setsuka-chan," he replied with a bright smile on his face, adding the suffix at the end which he learned symbolized the two as best friends ( **A/N: Or at least that was his interpretation of it** ). She couldn't help but gasp slightly and blush even more after at that, for some reason feeling very flustered by it. Did that mean he thought they were...and did she think that...

'No, that would just be silly,' she said to herself. And yet for some reason that thought lingered in her mind longer than expected, before finally shaking her head and suggested they get ready for the day.

As they did so, Link had to once again avert his eyes as she changed—though she stood behind the shade, the light was enough to see a silhouette of her taking her clothes off, making him blush once again. "So…what will you do now?" he asked, trying to get the nervousness out of him.

"Actually…I'm not entirely sure. Having been so focused on revenge, I never thought about anything beyond that…my master said he wanted me to live my life the way I want to, but I'm not yet sure exactly what I want in life…First, I think I need to visit my master's grave. After this, I think I owe him an apology. Maybe by then I will have a better idea of what to do."

Link gave a smile and nodded in understanding. "What will you do now, Link-kun?" she asked after stepping out in her usual kimono, once again idly noticing he changed back into his usual green outfit.

For some reason, Link felt a warm feeling inside him when he noticed she still added the "kun" at the end of his name, and this feeling was amplified more when she stepped out in that pretty kimono of hers. Why was that? Because she looked pretty? Or because of how they were now close friends? Once again, he still wasn't sure before mentally shrugging it off. "I'm going to continue going after Soul Edge. I'm heading to Osaka to find a ship that will take me to Europe. I met a man who said that port generally has a ship that makes the trip there on occasion. Hopefully, one will be heading there before I get to the city."

She nodded at that. "I see. Well, I wish you luck on your journey, Link-kun." Then an idea came to her before a mysterious smile adorned her face. "Actually, there is one more thing I would like to do before we part ways, Link-kun."

"Um, alright. What's that, Setsuka-chan?"

"Well…I was wondering if you would be willing to have a friendly spar with me? Ever since you stated you fought Mitsurugi, I've been curious as to what you can do," she finished with a competitive smirk.

Link looked at her, surprised for a bit before nodding and smirking himself. "Sure, sounds like fun."

* * *

After checking out of the inn (with Ayane telling Link to come again, adding a playful wink to him which made Link blush for reasons he wasn't sure why and just made Ayane giggle at his cute reaction), they headed to the outskirts of town away from people (and the daimyo coming in), though in the same general direction of Link's destination to save him a little time. They gave a bow to each other before taking their stances. Link took his cloak off and drew his sword and shield while Setsuka kept hers in its sheath, each of them wary at what they were seeing.

'I know she practices iaijutsu as well, but it seems she uses it a lot more often. This can be tricky.'

'I've never fought against someone with a shield before. This changes things a bit.'

They circled around each other, analyzing each other's fighting styles while waiting for the other to make the first move. Setsuka decided to do the honors and launched forward, drawing her sword faster than the eye could blink. However, Link still saw it coming and parried it away with his outstretched shield. He countered with a cross-swing to his right with his sword, only to block a similar attack from Setsuka and took a step back.

Setsuka took a step back as well, sheathing her sword in the process. Link narrowed his eyes at that. He had to admit, he never fought anyone who used iaijutsu on a regular basis like that.

Setsuka saw his reaction and smirked. "Alright, let's see how you handle THIS!"

She then gave an even faster draw that put Link on the defensive as he had trouble blocking all of her swings. He parried a swing to his right with his shield, only to find Setsuka right in his face. With her sword sheathed again, she grabbed his head with her right hand, and with her left leg, she flipped him off his feet before slamming him to the ground with her right hand ( **A/N: One of her throw moves from SC III & IV**).

She watched as Link slowly got up, her blade sheathed and at the ready to draw. Link dusted himself off before looking back. "Nice move, Setsuka-chan," he said with sincerity, impressed with her skill.

"Thank you, Link-kun. But that was just a taste of what I can do," she said, her smile never leaving her face.

"I'm sure. But I have a few tricks of my own," he states before getting in his fighting stance.

"Show me, then."

"Gladly."

Link then took charge as he went on the attack. He moved his sword to his right side and countered the draw from Setsuka when he got close. He then gave a series of horizontal slashes that slowly pushed Setsuka back before suddenly giving a rapid series of thrusts, the speed of which surprising Setsuka as she struggled to block them all. Link then gave one last hard thrust that, though blocked, knocked her off balance.

Taking advantage, Link gave a high horizontal slash before spinning around and going low and sweeping her off her feet with the flat end of his blade. Setsuka was caught off guard by the sudden high-low combo, who tried to counter the high swing by stepping back while spinning with another high slash, only to suddenly be flipped over and fall hard on her back.

Link then backed up, letting Setsuka get back to her feet. "Hm. Impressive."

Link just smirked in return. "Hope you have more, cause I have plenty more tricks up my sleeve," she shouted before engaging him in battle again.

They engaged in a series of swings, faster and harder than earlier before being deadlocked with Link's sword pressing against hers while it was still in its metal sheath.

"So do I," Link stated causing Setsuka's eyes to widen at the intensity of them. Gone was the soft, innocent though competitive expression in his eyes she saw earlier. Now it was very sharp, focused. Intense. And the dilated pupils—it was like he transformed into a whole different person.

She was then surprised when he pushed back with far more strength than she expected him to have and was again forced on the defensive from his attacks. Despite this, she upped her own game and started swinging faster herself.

They fought back and forth for several minutes, neither one gaining an advantage over the other, getting a few kicks and an elbow in at most.

Suddenly, Link quickly jumped back as she charged forward and threw his boomerang at her head. Though surprised, she successfully moved her head out of the way and continued forward, putting Link on the defensive as he dodged and weaved his way around her swings, having had to sheathe his sword to pull out and throw the boomerang. He backflipped several times, narrowly avoiding her swings each time before he gave a much larger jump back, surprising Setsuka a bit at how high and far Link jumped. As he did, he pulled out some shuriken he received from Hachibei, something not unnoticed by Setsuka.

'He keeps shuriken on him?' He threw three of them at her one at a time, which she deflected with ease as she sheathed her sword again. 'Strange…instead of throwing them all at once, he threw them one at a time. It was if he _wanted_ me to see them and deflect them. Why would he-'

"AHH!"

She suddenly hunched forward from something hard hitting her in the back of her head. She instinctively drew and swung her sword, feeling Link charge after her, but the angle of her position forced her to draw horizontally instead of upward like she wanted. Link jumped over her swing in response while grabbing her left arm in the process, which she had instinctively raised to her head in response to being hit from behind. He gracefully somersaulted over her arm and jerked it down while landing, making her off-balanced. Rather than bash her in the back of the head with his shield, instead he wrestled her down to the ground, forcing her on her stomach with her arm behind her and Link on top of her back.

From her position, she tried to change the grip on her sword and thrust it behind her, but she couldn't do so in time, and instead, Link grabbed her sword arm as well and forced her to drop her blade before pulling it behind her in a submission hold along with her other arm. She struggled to get free but found it difficult under his surprisingly considerable strength. Despite this, she couldn't help but be impressed with his strategy.

'Unbelievable! He attacked me at the precise moment my sword was out of position to use iaijutsu, simultaneously knocking me off balance and then to the ground while also maneuvering me out of position to counter with my blade. Urgh, how is he so strong!?'

She tried to roll around, get up on her knees, anything to try to throw him off of her, but to no avail. Given his age and size, she expected to have at least similar strength to his. But no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't get out of his grip, and her arms were straining from the pressure.

"You yield?" Link asked.

She stayed silent, still trying to get free. She struggled harder, but all it got her was increased pressure from Link. Finally, it was too much to bear.

"Alright! I yield!"

Link calmly let go and stepped off of her as she rubbed and rolled her shoulders from the pain. He offered a hand up, which she accepted as he helped pull herself up. Nodding in thanks, she retrieved her sword while Link went to retrieve his cloak and shuriken, as well as something else she couldn't yet see. When he returned, her eyes widened in shock.

The boomerang!

"So that's what hit me earlier! But…how did it hit me? I moved ourselves a considerable distance away so as to avoid its return-throw!"

Link held it up a bit while looking at it. "It's a magical boomerang. I can't explain how it fully works, but it somehow is able to return to the thrower even while on the move. Here, try it yourself."

She tentatively held it a bit, admiring the look up close. Then she gave it a throw and watched as it curved around in an arc before returning and catching it, with considerable ease compared to that Asuma guy, Link thought off-handedly.

"Now try it again, only take several steps to the side after throwing it."

She looked at Link a bit but did as requested, throwing it the same way as before. As soon as she threw it, she took five steps to her right, and to her surprise, as it came back it altered its path in mid-air—and came right back to her!

She caught it again, this time with surprise and wonder on her face. "Amazing…and the shuriken, wherever you got that from, was just a distraction while you waited for it to return. That's why you threw them one at a time, and rather slowly in between each throw."

Link nodded in confirmation.

She shook her head but smiled. "Amazing. You are the most surprising, skilled, and impressive fighter I've ever come across. It is no wonder how you were able to defeat Mitsurugi as well," which prompted Link to rub the back of his head at the praise. She couldn't help but let out a soft laugh at how cute he looked when he did that. She then handed back his boomerang. "It was an honor, Link-kun. Thank you for an impressive display of cunning and strategy," she stated with a bow which Link returned.

"Well, I think it's time to part ways, Link-kun," a sad look adorning her face as well as Link's, who reluctantly nodded.

She was going to miss him. In just a short time, they go from complete strangers, both born in foreign lands, to close friends who find they had more in common than they could have ever imagined.

A friend.

The thought was almost foreign to Setsuka, having never had friends growing up. It felt…nice to have a friend, she thought.

For Link, Setsuka was probably the closest friend he made in this world, and maybe in his life. The two grew up as orphans and were ridiculed often growing up. Both were raised in the care of a guardian who looked after them, and both later lost said guardians in their lives.

"Will we ever see each other again, Setsuka-chan?" he asked, the sorrow evident in his voice.

Her face mirrored his before giving a soft smile and placing a hand on his shoulder. "I'm sure we will."

"…You think so?"

"I do. I just…feel that we will someday," she replied with a smile.

Link looks at her for a bit before nodding. "Hai…See you again sometime, then, Setsuka-chan."

"You too, Link-kun…" She then bent down and embraced Link in a hug, much to his surprise before returning the gesture.

Link was then reminded of what that Happy Mask Salesman said to him after destroying Majora:

 _"Whenever there is a meeting, a parting is sure to follow. However, that parting need not last forever…Whether a parting be forever or merely for a short time…That is up to you_."

'And I intend for this parting to only be for just a short time,' he thought as they pulled back. Just as Link began to part, he heard Setsuka address him once more.

"Link-kun?"

"Yes, Setsuka-chan?" He looked at her to see what she wanted to say, and was confused as she seemed to have a...hesitant and rather shy look on her face. Just as he was about to ask what she wanted to say, he suddenly blushed bright red as she bent down again…and gave him a tender kiss to his cheek—with her chest just inches from his face (whether it was intentional or not, Link couldn't tell as he tried hard not to stare).

She finally pulled back and smiled at his bewildered look before standing back up, letting out a soft laugh at the expected reaction from him. She didn't know what possessed her to do that, but it just felt…right to her.

"Happy Birthday, Link-kun. May we meet each other again, some day." She then unfolded her umbrella and walked towards her destination, a bright smile on her face as she went.

Link stood still, having not moved in that time. That weird butterfly feeling came again when she kissed his cheek, and when he hugged her for that matter, and he still couldn't figure it out. Maybe girls just liked being friendly that way? He shook his head. He'll never figure out girls. Nonetheless, as he put his cloak back on and headed towards Kyoto, he still had a big smile on his face from it all—even though he wasn't entirely sure as to why.

* * *

(An unknown town)

Setsuka continued towards her destination, walking through a town late at night. A very light snow fell throughout the town, with but a few flakes falling here and there. As she crossed a bridge, she saw a girl around sixteen years old wearing a purple kimono with a small sword in her hands, eyeing a young man thirty feet in front of her but who was unaware of her presence.

He stopped for a bit, looking around at the snow falling before continuing. The girl eyed him, but found herself hesitating, as if conflicted on what she wanted to do.

"What do you intend to do with that?" The girl was surprised at someone behind her before striking at whomever had spoken on instinct. Setsuka easily blocked with her metal sheath/umbrella, then smacked her arm as she tried to swing again, causing her to drop her sword in surprise and fall to her knees from her momentum. She tried to grab for it, only for Setsuka to quickly kick it away and off the bridge, falling in the small stream below.

Setsuka walked around in front of her, seeing the girl's head drop in despair and utter defeat. "What are you intending to do with that?" she asked, although already knowing the answer.

The girl didn't answer but started sobbing a bit. "So it's revenge," she calmly stated while looking up to the sky. If this had been days earlier, she would have simply let her do as she wished. 'But now, things are different…and for the better,' she thought with a smile. She then knelt down beside her, holding her umbrella over the two of them to keep them out of the weather.

"I won't ask your reasons," she stated in a soothing voice, "but you should cast away your sword."

The girl, expecting to be disciplined, beaten, or maybe even killed, was surprised by her actions and tone and slowly looked at her with confusion on her face.

"I used to share the same lust for vengeance as you do now," pausing a bit to let the girl process this before continuing. "But that will not make anyone happy…including yourself."

The girl slowly looked down, a sad look on her face while remaining silent as she listened to her. She was then surprised again as Setsuka gently grasped her arm and helped her up before escorting her across the bridge—and leaving the sword behind.

"Let me tell you how someone helped steer me away from that same path of vengeance, and helped change my life for the better…"

* * *

 **A/N: I debated long and hard whether Setsuka should join Link on his journey, but ultimately decided against it, mainly so I could do that scene above and show she truly has let go of her quest for vengeance.**

 **That being said, this is NOT the last we'll see of Setsuka; it will just be awhile before we see her again. Though she certainly left quite an impression on Link before doing so ;)**

 **Sorry for the long delay. Work picked up considerably for me, forcing me to work weekends for months and having little time to myself. Now that it has calmed down considerably, I can focus on my writing more.**

 **From what I read online, a family called the Hojo clan in Japan used the same symbol as the Triforce and existed in the same period the Soul Calibur series takes place in, which is why it looked relatively familiar to Setsuka.**

 **The above explanation of why she was after revenge when her master said not to pursue it was the best explanation I could think of, being so focused on it she subconsciously suppressed her master's request to the point of not remembering it and the Song of Healing sparking the memory. Hopefully I made it look plausible, anyway.**

 **I know the dreams didn't quite make sense entirely, with her being attacked by the mob like that as a child for killing her master. But then again, when did dreams entirely make sense to begin with? Ultimately, the dream was mainly to reflect her state of mind in her pursuit of revenge.**

 **But now she has abandoned such a quest and persuaded another to do the same, all thanks to Link.**

 **In the meantime, Link will encounter another SC character next chapter. Who will it be?**

 **Find out next time!**

 **For now, this is Agent Ghost-Writer 000 signing off.**


	10. Chapter 10 - The Nuke-Nin

**.**

This is a sentence. - Narration. No character speaking or thinking.

"This is a sentence." - Character speaking out loud.

'This is a sentence.' - Character speaking in his/her head.

This _is_ a sentence. - Emphasis placed on the italic word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

This IS a sentence. - Same as with the single italic, just a variation of expressing the emphasis.

 _This is a sentence. -_ All italics means the event is happening in a dream or flashback of which I would give a quick note prior saying a dream or flashback is occurring.

 _This_ is _a sentence_. - During a dream or flashback, emphasis placed in the normal text word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

 **.**

 **"Kodachi" - A type of sword similar in design to a katana but with a shorter blade.**

 **"Kunai" - A type of dagger with the blade somewhat resembling a spear. These can used to attack in close combat or thrown from a distance.**

 **"Ofuda" - Type of talisman inscripted on paper, wood, metal, or other object to help ward off evil spirits and protect people from harm. In this case, it will be written on pieces of paper.**

 **"-sama" - A suffix added to a name to show great respect towards that person. Like how in America in the anime Naruto, the Hokage is referred to as "Lord Hokage" or "Lady Hokage." Or as another example if you're a Star Wars fan, it would be like calling Yoda, "Master Yoda."**

 **"Oni" - evil Japanese spirit**

 **"Gaijin" - Foreigner**

 **"Ki" - Life or spirit energy as it is called in Japan. Referred to as "Chi" or "Qi" in China. Or if you prefer "Chakra" in Naruto or "The Force" in Star Wars.**

 **I do not own The Legend of Zelda or Soul Calibur.**

* * *

 **Chapter 10 - The Nuke-Nin**

The past two days had been uneventful as Link approached Kyoto in the night. He traveled through the woods, staying close—but not on—a path through the forest to avoid encountering anyone. He thought back to his meeting with Setsuka and wondered if she had reached her master's grave yet. He never did ask exactly where she was raised. Hmm, that might make it harder to find her again when he some day returned.

It was strange. He only knew her one day, and already he thought about seeing her again someday. It brought a smile to his face just thinking about it. And a blush to his face when he remembered the kiss she gave him...and that "incident" she appeared to be unaware of. Just why did he feel so weird when stuff like that happened? Like with Ayane when _she_ kissed him on the cheek for giving her those rupees? Or like when he briefly held hands with that one girl after saving her...even though she later pushed him off that cliff he had saved her from falling in? Or anytime whenever a girl hugged him...regardless as to _how_ , he mentally added, the "incidents" with Setsuka and Cremia coming to mind? Or-

His thoughts were interrupted when he suddenly felt something off to his right. Something dark. Soul Edge? No, not quite, but still not pleasant. The darkness felt more along the lines of Majora, the evil mask-spirit that threatened to level Termina with the moon. Or the Bongo Bongo demon in Kakariko Village.

Narrowing his eyes, he cautiously ran towards the source of the fowl energy, which appeared to be emanating from a shrine of some kind atop a very large staircase. Why they had to build such structures so high up, he didn't know. Thankfully for him, he had approached from an area that didn't require walking up so many stairs, although from another direction, it would take well over a hundred steps to make. Seeing no one nearby, he cautiously approached the entrance and peered inside. He didn't see any evil spirit, but he could still sense something emanating from within.

Link slowly entered, trying to find the source. Inside looked like a temple of some kind. Candles were placed all across the catwalk that surrounded the floor which was below ground level. Banners of different colors and symbols adorned the place, along with a statue of Buddha, whom Hachibei had once mentioned to Link. After looking around, he spotted a set of stairs leading underground, where the dark energy appeared to be emanating from. As he approached the stairs going down below, the feeling got stronger and more intense. Definitely felt a lot like Majora and Bongo Bongo.

Before descending the stairs, Link muttered an incantation. He then took a step back, cupping his hands by his waist. Then with a shout, he raised his hands up and a green energy surrounded him while a bright green ball of light gathered in his hands. When he was done, the ball of light then moved towards the entrance of the temple and hovered there. Satisfied with the effects of using Farore's Wind, Link turned back to the stairs. Taking a deep breath, he descended down the stairs, bracing himself for whatever was lurking below.

* * *

Inside the lower levels of the temple, a fierce battle was being waged. One was a human female dressed in a red, skin-tight body suit with spiked metal plating on the shoulders, shins and elbows. Her hair was brown and tied in a ponytail, and she wielded a pair of kodachi blades. This was Taki no Fu-Ma, or Taki of the Fu-Ma Clan. Slayer of demons and one of the strongest of the clan. Unfortunately, she had become a nuke-nin, or rogue ninja, in order to save her childhood friend Chie and Chie's father Hachibei, and so she was now hunted by those she had trained and fought with all her life.

Her blades were locked with that of the demon before her who wielded a katana. Standing over a head taller than her, he looked like a mutated human/fox hybrid with gold armored plating from the shoulders to the feet. It had fur covering its body with sharp claws on its hands and feet, the latter a purple color in contrast with the arms which were more yellow, and pupil-less eyes. Multiple tails protruded from its back, and its long hair extended past its shoulders with two long strands draped over its chest.

"Toki! You must fight it! Do not let the demon control you!" she shouted. The beast known as Toki merely snarled in response and delivered a kick to her mid-section, which she jumped back to avoid. They had been fighting for over half an hour, with Taki breathing heavily through such a battle. "Is this what Toki has become? A slave to demonic power? The very beings we swore to destroy!?" she yelled, trying to get through to him.

Toki, in his now demonic state, was unable to reply back in speech, only in growls and snarls. He was originally a human in his late-fifties before being transformed into the beast before Taki. He had absorbed the powerful demon known as Gel-o-Fury, whom Taki had previously sealed, that led to his current transformation in a desperate attempt to obtain more power.

They crossed swords yet again, sparks flying as they made contact with each other. While Toki had more power and strength, Taki had more agility and speed, allowing her to stay a step ahead of his blows, ironically using the same moves Toki himself had taught her. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Taki saw her chance.

While making a series of swings, Toki overextended his last attack, allowing Taki to parry the blow and cause Toki to become off balanced in the process. She delivered a mighty jump where Taki kicked his chin hard while continuing to rise in the air and doing a flip, the force of the kick causing him to stagger and snap his head back. During the jump, she then pulled out four small kunai blades, each with a piece of paper with markings on it wrapped around the blades. She threw them to the ground by Toki, surrounding him in the process. Immediately after doing so, she started to descend from her jump.

Toki recovered just in time to see her descending in the air and prepared to slice her with another attack, but his eyes widened when he saw Taki making hand gestures that he recognized. He looked down to see the kunai blades by his feet and tried to get away, but it was too late. They suddenly activated, and then exploded around him.

Taki heard him howl in pain as she landed, having jumped nearly 20 feet in the air and landed just as far away from Toki. When the smoke cleared, the demonic form of Toki was severely injured, burn marks now all over its flesh. Much of its armor was blown off and dented, and he was bleeding in various parts on his body. Despite this, he still stood upright, weapon in hand. "Please Toki, don't make me kill you," she pleaded.

Toki had raised Taki since she was orphaned as a young child. He had become like a father to her, and to see him reduced to such a state tore at her heart. But the dark energy of Mekki-Maru corrupted him, slowly but surely bringing ruin to the Fu-Ma clan as a whole before finally absorbing the demon Gel-O-Fury to gain power. Toki charged again, noticeably slower than before. Its swings were less powerful and less precise. Taki had no trouble dodging these and countered with a couple slashes to the abdomen and kicking him away, making him grunt in pain again.

Taki knew it was over now. No longer could Toki fight properly, his injuries taking its toll. The demon that possessed him, though, did not care in the slightest. Taki then closed her eyes and muttered an incantation while wrapping a piece of paper around one of her blades, which started glowing as she spoke. Unaware, Toki then charged again, sword straight in front to try to impale her. Just as he approached, she opened her eyes as she finished her incantation.

"Evil…" She parried the thrust with her other blade-

"BEGONE!" before thrusting her own blade with the ofuda paper into Toki's sternum.

A bright light enveloped Toki as the ofuda started taking its effect. A demonic howl erupted from his mouth, electricity coursing through his body and sparking wildly while a magenta colored aura surrounded him. After nearly twenty seconds, the effects wore off, and Toki collapsed facedown onto the ground.

Finally, Taki had won.

Soon, smoke started emanating from his body as the demonic features started to recede. Fur was turned back to human skin, albeit badly burned from the explosion. Sharp claws became normal fingernails. Canines receded to normal teeth. Soon, Toki was back to human form.

Despite this, Taki knew it was not yet over. The evil spirit was still inside her master, albeit greatly wounded for the last attack. Slowly, she approached the now human form of Toki, blades prepared to put an end to it all, despite the protests of her heart in having to kill her former master.

He suddenly groaned in pain. The wound in his sternum was still there and his breathing was heavy and ragged. Despite this, he managed to slowly lifted his head up, looking around as he tried to gather his bearings. "Taki…Is that you? It's very dark..." Taki gasped and froze in her place. That was definitely her master talking. Was he back to normal? Did he remember what happened? Hope started to fill her heart upon hearing this. She opened her mouth to call out her master's name, then suddenly his eyes widened and he screamed in agony. As he screamed, a purple mist started coming out of his mouth, vaguely forming the demonic entity it was seen as previously as Toki collapsed once again.

It snarled at Taki, angered at being forced out of his vessel that it had possessed. The last attack she inflicted greatly wounded the oni, and it intended to make her pay, as well as for sealing it away for many years prior. Just as it prepared to charge at Taki, what appeared to be an arrow suddenly struck it in the side of its chest with a sudden blast of light energy as soon as it made contact, making it yell out in pain. Right after the initial strike, three light energy beams appeared from the point of the arrow's impact, then briefly flew around the evil spirit before piercing its spiritual head and body. It howled in agony from the light energy, and Taki watched in fascination as it started dissolving and fading into nothingness. After several seconds, the evil spirit was completely and utterly vanquished.

The room was then filled with silence. All Taki could hear was her own breathing. She blinked, trying to sense if anything was left, but ultimately could not sense any trace of it anywhere.

The Gel-O-Fury was gone. Finally, it was truly and utterly destroyed...A sense of relief washed over Taki's face. But where did that mysterious energy come from?

She turned towards the entrance and she blinked and widened her eyes in surprise and confusion. Standing several feet off to the side of the entrance was a stranger in a cloak with a bow in his hands. Seeing the evil spirit vanquished, he put his bow away and looked at the two, his face obstructed by the hood.

"Taki…"

Her master's voice caused her to look back and she knelt by him as she approached him. "Master…are you alright?" He was breathing erratically, and he coughed up blood from his injuries. "Master…I'm sorry. I-"

"Taki…" he slowly breathed out. "Thank you…for freeing…my soul."

"You'll be alright, master. Stay with me. I can get you to-"

"Taki…" he interrupted her. "Please…forgive me…"

He suddenly went limp in her arms. His chest no longer breathing in air. "Master…no, master!" Taki whispered. It was rare for Taki to show any emotion, but the death of her Master, the one who raised her for over fifteen years, and at her own hands, was enough to crack her emotional barrier.

"Toki-sama!" Taki and the cloaked figure were surprised at the new voices approaching from the stairs, the cloaked figure taking a few steps back towards her.

Five more figures dressed similarly to Taki appeared at the stairs. One of them who only had one arm pointed his blade at them. "Taki! You traitor! First you defy our clan by lying to Toki about Hachibei and Chie, then you take the Mekki-Maru for yourself, then you incite a rebellion within the Fu-Ma Clan, and now you aligned yourself with this stranger to kill Toki himself!?" he shouted as he and his men drew their weapons.

Taki growled in frustration at her condition as she slowly went into a fighting position. She was exhausted as she looked at the one-armed man she knew as Geki, who also noticed Taki's fatigue. He was Toki's right-hand man and had gone after Taki previously when she initially left the clan, even defeating her so as to obtain the Mekki-Maru to bring back to Toki.

However, when he pulled it from its sheath, Taki's seals that she had placed on it reacted and caused an explosion, severing his arm in the process. He has held a personal grudge against her ever since.

Now she found herself weakened with an unknown figure that Geki mistakenly assumed was her ally.

Link, meanwhile, was thinking how to resolve this situation. He quickly learned four things from what Geki had said: 1) This woman was named Taki; 2) This was the same Taki that Hachibei mentioned; 3) Apparently the Fu-Ma Clan is fighting amongst itself with Taki being an instigator of it; and 4) The man thought he and Taki joined together to kill Toki.

"Men! Destroy these-"

"Hey! Listen!" That caused everyone to turn to the cloaked figure who stepped forward in front of Taki, arms spread out in a "wait, hold up" manner. In his head, though, Link berated himself for suddenly sounding like his old fairy companion who, though was invaluable to him, was sometimes annoying every time she spoke those same words to him.

"Toki was possessed! The evil spirit that was in him is gone now. I vanquished it. There is no reason to fight her anymore!"

This caused many of them to look at him, then at each other in confusion. When they looked back at him, their eyes suddenly widened. This was because they had deduced that: 1) He wasn't native to Japan based on his facial complexion; 2) He had an accent they were not familiar with; 3) They could see he was armed; 4) The cloaked figure was a kid!

And he claims that Toki was possessed? And that he vanquished it?

They again looked at each other in confusion, but only for a short while before Geki spoke again. "Do you take me for a fool, boy? Here you are trespassing in a sacred temple with the nuke-nin and the master lying dead, which you say was possessed by an _oni_? And _you_ somehow _vanquished_ it? I'm through with words!" he yelled, cutting Link off from speaking again. "Men! No more delays! Kill these two now!"

They quickly moved to surround the two as Link backed up closer to Taki. Taki's mind was racing at what was happening. After reluctantly slaying her possessed master, the oni that possessed him left his body before disintegrating into nothing by this cloaked boy. Then Geki and his men find them and ordered to kill them.

So now she and a kid she never met before were backed together against five Fu-Ma ninja including Geki himself, and she was heavily exhausted. Said kid turned his head slightly towards her. "You alright?"

Taki looked at the boy in disdain. "You should not have come. Now you will just be killed by my former allies."

Link was a little put off by her attitude, especially helping her destroy that demon, but given the circumstances, he kept quiet.

"What!? It can't be!" Geki shouted, who was now looking at shock at the boy, much to the confusion of the others (including Link). Taki then realized what Geki had sensed and she too looked at him in shock. "He possesses shards of the blade!"

Now everyone had a shocked look, including Link. 'How did he know that? Hachibei sealed up the box to prevent detection!'

"Change of plans! Kill the traitor, and if possible, take the boy alive!"

Taki kept her defensive stance, her mind going a mile a minute as to how to get out of this. She could still handle a couple of these ninja, but not all of them, and certainly not Geki. Not in her current condition. But before she could make a move, the boy suddenly grabbed onto her…"What are you…what's going on? What magic is this?"

The other Fu-Ma ninja instinctively took a step back when the two were suddenly surrounded by a green energy…and then suddenly vanished!

"What the-"

"How in-"

"Where did they go!?"

They all said at the same time. Geki stayed silent for a bit before a flash of realization crossed his face. "Men! Back upstairs! They must have been transported to that green light we saw earlier. Hurry!"

* * *

At the entrance of the Hoko Temple, a sphere of green light no more than a foot in diameter had been hovering at the top of the entryway. It had remained that way for the past five minutes they were there. They had been watching it while looking for anyone approaching as ordered by Geki, either from within or without. Two Fu-Ma ninja were on guard, standing roughly ten feet from the green light from either side of the doorway, trying to ascertain what it was.

"Any ideas?"

"None. It does appear to be some kind of ninpo, not anything I am familiar with, though."

"It also doesn't have any demonic feel to it. You think the traitor had something to do with it?"

"I thought about that, and though I wouldn't put it past her, I have my doubts. If she had, I would think she would have learned it from the master, who would have also taught it to Geki, and even he was just as perplexed about it."

"I wonder if the master created it, but is something only he knows how to do?"

"Hmm, definitely possible…and maybe-"

Their conversation was halted when suddenly the green light reacted and expanded in size, causing the two to jump back and prepare themselves for what may occur. It then made a quick expansion to about eight feet in diameter, forcing them to shield their eyes from the intense brightness of it before two bodies suddenly dropped down from it, the light vanishing completely immediately afterwards.

When the light cleared, they saw a cloaked figure who appeared to be helping up one of their own.

"Ugh…what…was that?" they heard the Fu-Ma ninja say.

'Wait, that voice…it's her!'

"Kill them!"

As soon as they recognized her, they immediately attacked them both. Anyone helping the traitor is an enemy per the master.

They slashed using a reverse grip with their kodachi blades at the two. Taki, despite her exhaustion, countered with her own before having to roll away, being tired and out of position due to that strange magic the boy used.

The boy in question dodged and weaved his way to avoid his attacker's strikes, unable to draw his sword. Whoever this guy was, he knew what he was doing in keeping him on the defensive. The man then jumped against wall and gave a diving slash at him. Link narrowly backflipped out of the way as the man continued pursuing him.

Using a familiar tactic, Link jumped back and pulled out three shuriken and threw them at him. The man was surprised that this _kid_ had shuriken, no doubt given to him by the traitor, and had to adjust himself to avoid them. Suddenly he found _himself_ on the defensive as the boy started slashing at him at high speed with his now drawn sword. He was then knocked off balance as suddenly his arms were pushed up and back from…a shield? 'When did he pull out-'

That was as far as his thoughts went as suddenly he felt the boy jump and pull up _on top_ of him, resting on his shoulders before he felt the boy's sword smack him twice in the rear with the flat part of his blade before the boy, with surprising strength, suddenly flipped himself down in front of him with his legs and, using his neck as a hinge, used those same legs to launch him forward headfirst…and right into the stone wall, knocking him out.

Taki meanwhile, though exhausted, managed to fight off her attacker to gain some distance. She then blocked a series of slashes before locking blades with her attacker, who was trying to press down on her. However, she charged what little energy she had, and with a large shove, pushed her attacker back while forcing his arms to the side. She then took advantage by running forward and giving a powerful flipkick to the chin, staggering him before delivering another hard kick to the stomach, launching back and landing hard on the ground before coming to a complete stop.

She then looked back to the boy just in time to see him knock his attacker out...in a rather unorthodox way, causing her to raise an eyebrow—not just at _what_ and _how_ he did it, but the fact he could take down a Fu-Ma ninja to begin with. And then there was that green energy, and somehow they were transported back to the entrance of the temple, she now noticed. Just how-

"Hurry! They must not get away!"

She swore to herself as she heard Geki and his men coming up from the stairway below. Suddenly to her surprise, she saw two large round objects were tossed just inside the staircase…with fuses in it!?

"Come on!" She was broken out of her thoughts as the boy grabbed her arm and pulled her into the direction of the exit before running on her own power.

"MEN! GET BACK!"

Geki and his front two men jumped back when they saw what had landed in front of them, jumping into the other two (surprised) men right behind them in the process. The explosion caused the stair entrance to blow apart and collapse, blocking the stairway, although not entirely. Luckily, they managed to avoid getting blown up themselves. They coughed out some of the dust as they struggled to stand up.

"What the hell was that?" asked one of the two that was tackled.

"Grrr, a couple of explosives. Taki didn't have anything like _that_ on her. It must have been that gaijin boy who had them under his cloak. Hurry! We can still catch them!"

* * *

Back outside, Link and Taki had exited the Buddhist shrine of the temple. They descended the long set of stairs of over a hundred steps to the edge of the temple grounds, only to find three more ninja waiting for them.

"Hey! It's her! The traitor!"

"Who is he!?"

"It doesn't matter! Get them both!"

'Goddesses! How many of these guys are there!?' Link thought. One of them jumped high and threw multiple shuriken at them, separating them while the other two charged after them. Link drew his sword and shield, parrying his attacker's blows, but found his movements hindered because of the cloak. As he spun around while blocking the ninja's slashes, the ninja saw an opening and stepped on the part of the cloak that was touching the ground, causing Link to stumble in his movements.

Out of position, he received a slash to the side of his abdomen, followed by a hard kick to his back, knocking him front first into the stairs they had descended earlier. The ninja charged after him, ready to strike again, only to suddenly get knocked to the side by one of his own men that Taki had thrown into him, having fought off her attacker but sported two new slashes on her arm and stomach in the process.

Link turned to his savior, only to widen his eyes and quickly throw his boomerang in her direction.

She widened her eyes at that, only to see it was thrown just to the side of her. She followed its path, just in time to see it strike the third ninja who was sneaking up on her from behind. With the ninja distracted from the blow, she finished him off without missing a beat, using a reverse-grip thrust into his chest.

Link frowned at that as he caught his boomerang and pocketed it. He had slain monsters, wizards, and demons and so forth, but something about killing a person just didn't sit right with him (a certain Gerudo King being a lone exception). However, he pushed it aside as suddenly he saw Taki drop to her knees, sweating and breathing heavily.

Taki was almost spent. Having fought her master Toki, both in human and demon form, exhausted most of her ki, and the fact she had to deal a fatal blow to the man who was like her father has left her emotionally drained as well.

"Taki! We have to keep going!"

She turned her head to see the boy kneeling by her, trying to help her up. Just who was this kid and what was he doing here? Why risk his life for her? And worse, get involved with the Fu-Ma clan? She decided to worry about that later. First they needed to escape. She looked around, trying to find something in particular before spotting them. "That way!" she said in exhaustion, nudging the boy off the stone path to some trees.

Link, meanwhile, was wondering how the heck they planned on escaping when those five ninja from earlier were still after them. He could carry Taki without too much difficulty, but he doubted he could outrun them in doing so. She then pointed where she wanted them to go, and he wordlessly obeyed, giving her a shoulder for support due to her exhaustion and injuries. He could see significant slashes that will cause an infection if not treated soon. He was wondering where they were headed before his eyes lit up as they cleared the initial set of trees.

Ten horses were spread out in the area with saddles and everything. Counting the number of ninja they encountered, he saw it was the same number. 'So these are those ninjas' horses. Well, I'm sure they can spare a couple,' he thought as he helped Taki onto one. Then an idea came to Link, though he was a little hesitant about it. 'Well, desperate times and all that. Just hope one of the horses doesn't get too close to it.'

"Taki, keep going! I'll catch up later! I'm going to buy us some time!"

Taki looked at him briefly before deciding to do as instructed, her horse taking off at high speed. Link got on his own escape horse, just in time to see the Fu-Ma ninja halfway down the stairs. Link then pulled out another bomb and threw it near where the horses were camped, but aimed it so they wouldn't get caught in the explosion before taking off. It landed no closer than twenty-five feet from the nearest horse and started flashing red, flashing red faster as the fuse got shorter before it finally exploded after roughly six seconds had passed from being lit.

Taki heard the explosion and turned her head back in confusion. 'What in the…What in the world is he do-?' She then saw the horses running all over the place. 'I see. Interesting plan,' inwardly impressed at his tactic.

Immediately when the bomb exploded, the horses became frightened at the sudden noise and bright flash. This caused them to spread out and scatter around all over the area in different directions, preventing the other ninja from immediately giving chase, just as he planned. 'Hopefully that will buy us some time,' Link thought as he rushed up to catch up to Taki.

* * *

"Blasted kid and that traitor!" Geki growled to himself as he and his men each struggled to saddle a horse. They had spent the next couple minutes trying to give pursuit, but the spooked horses were making it difficult to settle down enough to pursue them. By then, a new problem emerged for them.

"Over there! After them!"

"Halt! Stay where you are!"

Geki and his men turned around and saw several temple guards descending the stairs, some firing arrows from as far as the top while some had reached the bottom. Some of the guards were taken out prior to Geki and his men entering the shrine where Toki and Taki were, and were done so in a way so as to not alert the other guards on the temple grounds. The initial explosion within the shrine alerted other guards in the surrounding areas who rushed to investigate, finding the two Fu-Ma inside but missing the other Fu-Ma, Taki, and the boy. Then by the second explosion, more guards had gathered and finally caught sight of the intruders and gave chase.

"Kuso! Come on! Let's get out of here!"

"Don't let them escape!"

Four guards caught up to two of them and engaged them in combat, but found themselves unable to stop them as they were taken out by the Fu-Ma who finally were able to get on their horses and run off. However, they did slow them down long enough for reinforcements to arrive with horses of their own. The guards spotted them from over a hundred feet away as they gave chase.

"There they are! Fire!"

They fired their arrows at them from horseback to try to slow them down. Geki and his men avoided them, trying to pursue Taki and the boy while also being pursued themselves. At this rate, the traitor will get away once again. All thanks to this gaijin of a kid in green, whom by now were out of their sight.

"I will find you, Taki, and you too, gaijin! You have just made a new enemy! Mark my words, I will find you some day and place your heads on a pike!" he shouted as he and his men desperately tried to lose the temple guards.

* * *

 **A/N: So, Link has finally come across the elusive Taki of the Fu-Ma clan, though despite destroying the Gel-O-Fury, Taki was not entirely receptive of Link. What will happen to them now that the Fu-Ma know of Link and the shards of Soul Edge he possesses? And what does Taki think of Link possessing the evil shards?**

 **Given the Light Arrow's effect on dark beings, I felt it not unreasonable that it could destroy evil spirits like the Gel-O-Fury entirely. Ganondorf could be stunned by it, but only the Silver Arrows have been shown in game to actually kill him.**

 **I felt after a long hiatus, more than one chapter posted would be appropriate.**

 **The Japan Arc is just about completed. Soon, Link will be making the trip to Europe where Soul Edge resides. But what will Taki have to say about his hunt for Soul Edge?**

 **Find out next time!**

 **For now, this is Agent Ghost-Writer 000 signing off.**


	11. Chapter 11 - The Hylian and the Ninja

**(UPDATE as of 5/22/19)**

 **A/N: So just a day after I posted this chapter, I suddenly had trouble trying to get the next chapter going the way I wanted to. It just...wasn't flowing the way I wanted it to, and I was having trouble figuring out why. And then it hit me...I felt I ended the last chapter too early plot-wise. Like the ending just felt...rushed, despite the fact I spent over a week working on the finale of that chapter. I felt I was too anxious trying to get Link out of Japan and to Europe, and more importantly, trying to showcase his diplomatic abilities which I felt was too unrealistic if he always succeeded every time**

 **And I promised I myself I would do my best to let the story flow on its own, regardless of how long it might take and yet without dragging it out (though admittedly still struggled with a prior chapter on that). And then shortly after coming to that revelation, I suddenly had an idea that I felt should have been used, and so I decided to redo part of this chapter. The first two-thirds or so is the same as what I originally posted, and it's the remaining third where the changes are made if you want to just skip ahead that way.**

 **So, my apologies for forcing you the readers to have to go through at least part of the chapter again as well as unexpectedly deleting the chapter I had posted and causing confusion...and likely a little anger at seeing a new chapter posted only to not see it. I may be a new writer, but that was still no excuse, so I'm sorry for those who were upset from it all.**

 **On that note, I could use some writing tips to avoid similar mistakes in the future. I have many ideas that flow through my head, but selecting the right ones is quite difficult, as this reloaded chapter demonstrates. What constructive tips can you give this novice (or idiot) writer so that I have the chapters EXACTLY the way I want them and minimize any such headaches in the future?**

 **(UPDATE as of 5/16/19)**

 **A/N: Wow! Thanks so much for the reviews! I don't mean to have been away for so long, just been busy with work and life as of late-**

 **"It was over six months, dumbass!"**

 **(dodges bullets and arrows and shuriken)**

 **Eh, hehe...(ahem) quite. But, now that things have quieted down, I can update considerably more frequently.** **On a side note, I recently started a new story and posted a couple chapters already. It's basically a novelization of the game Ocarina of Time as depicted by the gameplay, with a few adjustments as needed to make it more realistic in certain ways that could not fully be replicated due to the gameplay's limitations. Go check it out!...please?**

 **Now, to address some questions and comments about THIS story:**

 **I know some were disappointed that Link wouldn't have the masks with him in this story. I just think it would have either detracted from the story a bit or made him OP, at least to an extent. Especially with like the Fierce Deity Mask which was REALLY OP even in the fight against Majora itself. However, Link's running speed in this story is now equivalent to his running speed as if he was wearing the Bunny Hood from Majora's Mask, if that's any consolation.**

 **Link's age was never really given in OOT or MM (or most other games for that matter). In the OOT manual, Saria was specifically given an age of 12, and so I figured Link being 12 sounded about right. Some might argue she is actually much older and just _looks_ 12 due to her Kokiri heritage, but that's another story.**

 **Yeah, it does look like Link had progressed very quickly in his training with Hachibei, almost Batman-esque one might think. This is because I just didn't want to drag out a training montage of like four chapters or anything like that. Hopefully it did not seem too unrealistic.**

 **Some may be wondering why Link is merely collecting the shards and has not flat out destroyed them yet. Don't worry. I will get to that at an appropriate time.**

 **I also received a question on the bed conditions between Link and Setsuka in an earlier chapter.** **I had originally written that chapter as if there was just one bed, but then changed it upon further research on how people in Japan generally sleep.** **In Japan, they did not generally sleep in beds at all back then. In fact even today, most still do not; instead, they sleep on the floor. I did not specify in the chapter, but they generally sleep on what is called a "tatami" mat, which is basically a squared or rectangular mat a couple inches thick and traditionally composed of rice straw and maybe some compressed wood chips in it.**

 **On top of this mat is a futon, but is not the same type of futon like what you might see in college dorms. It's mainly a puffy set of blankets that you lay in that, combined with the mat, almost feels like a bed mattress when laying on them. One article indicated they seem to provide less back pain, was more hygienic, and was more versatile compared to a usual bed mattress, but I digress (and I still sleep in a bed).**

 **To save a little time, I've decided to only add Japanese translations when a new word is used in the chapter as opposed to every time I use it. Though the Japan arc is just about done, it will still take a couple more chapters to complete.**

 **A shout out to Duke Serkol who made note of the Japanese language for the name Gel-O-Fury, which is "Mōdotakuyō." I admit, I was using the term as described on the Soul Calibur wiki page, and I did not see the Japanese wording for it on that site...which upon closer inspection, I later found was right by the English wording in parenthesis...hehe...(ahem).**

 **Also a shout out to TypedSomeWords for the spelling corrections discovered in earlier chapters. I really appreciate it, as well as the other suggestions and helpful critique given. I'll keep them in mind as I go through the story.**

 **Glad you're all enjoying the story so far! Keep the reviews coming!**

 **.**

This is a sentence. - Narration. No character speaking or thinking.

"This is a sentence." - Character speaking out loud.

'This is a sentence.' - Character speaking in his/her head.

This _is_ a sentence. - Emphasis placed on the italic word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

This IS a sentence. - Same as with the single italic, just a variation of expressing the emphasis.

 _This is a sentence. -_ All italics means the event is happening in a dream or flashback of which I would give a quick note prior saying a dream or flashback is occurring.

 _This_ is _a sentence_. - During a dream or flashback, emphasis placed in the normal text word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

 **.**

 **I do not own The Legend of Zelda or Soul Calibur.**

* * *

 **Chapter 11 - The Hylian and the Ninja**

The two had been riding for over fifteen minutes at high speeds before finally stopping briefly to address their wounds. Link was only lightly injured as his wounds didn't take nearly as long to patch, a few minutes at most, though he was upset of his Kokiri tunic being cut again. While Chie was sewing his tunic after his training with Hachibei, Link watched a little bit on how it was done, getting a few pointers from her. She even gave him an extra needle and thread for just such an occasion on his travels, although he hadn't actually practiced himself.

Taki, meanwhile, was trying to bandage her arm and stomach where she had been injured. The bleeding had finally stopped, but she was still low on energy after all the fighting with-

She shook her head as she tried not to think about it. "Are you alright, Taki," Link asked, getting her attention. "Do you need help with your woun-"

"I'm fine," she hastily replied, hissing in pain right after she said that.

"Ar-Are you sure? I have something that can hel-"

"I said I'm fine!" she stated angrily. "I can take care of myself!"

Link flinched at her tone, a little hurt at how she snapped at him but stayed silent. He still couldn't help but worry about her, though. She was obviously in pain and was having trouble bandaging herself up. Why wouldn't she accept help? But seeing how upset she was, he decided to just let it go.

After several minutes, they continued on at Taki's urging, altering their direction a bit. Taki hissed at her wounds every now and then, her injuries still bothering her from the constant motions on the horse. Link looked at her when she did, wanting to see if she was alright, and not just from her injuries but what happened at the temple. The angry/annoyed look she gave back, though, prevented him from saying anything.

After over forty-five minutes of riding in rather awkward silence, they finally came to a stop by a small pond in the woods a little ways off the beaten path. They wordlessly took a drink, along with their horses who were grateful for the reprieve. They then sat down to rest while the horses stood off to the side.

Link had since taken the hood off his cloak, revealing his face in full to Taki for the first time. He was definitely an outsider, she thought. It was a strange outfit he wore under that cloak, and yet it seemed to somehow suit him. She thought she may have seen something similar in one of the European countries, but wasn't sure which one. He looked relatively toned for his age, seeing a little muscle on his arms and legs, and the position of his sword and shield told her he was left-handed. The shield itself was another indicator of him being a gaijin as it was often seen as a weakness amongst warriors in this land. She couldn't see the front of the shield from her position, but it did look to be made of metal. She was curious as to where the bow and boomerang went, the latter of which was another odd weapon of choice, she thought. She expected it to at least see them stick out slightly or hang from his waist, but she didn't see them anywhere. Or those explosives he used. 'Odd. Where in the world did they go?'

Deciding to worry about that later, she continued focusing on patching herself up, the horseback riding affecting the bandages a bit. Her keen eyes noticed how the boy tried to look occupied, looking around the area and pet his horse as she tended to her wounds, but he would look at her direction every now and then, like he wanted to say something to her. Thankfully (to her), he had chosen to stay silent in that time. She mentally swore at her current position—injured and exhausted and on the run with the Fu-Ma potentially on their trail, with some gaijin kid who not only got himself involved and became a target of the Fu-Ma as a result, but also had shards of _Soul Edge_ on him—something _far_ too dangerous to be in possession of a child. And chances are, he had no clue as to just what he had in his possession. Time to let him know just how much of a mess he was in.

"(sigh) I suppose I should thank you for helping me escape from that shrine," Taki finally said after finishing patching herself up, getting Link's attention, "but, you should not get yourself involved in matters that do not concern you," she added with a rather cold tone at the end. The boy gave a frown and another somewhat hurt look at that. "While I appreciate your assistance, I can take care of myself. I do not need help from a child with no business in these lands to begin with."

At that, Link had an indignant look on his face, before looking off to the side a bit. He had met a number of people that were angry and/or difficult to work with in some way, like Darunia when he first met him, Ingo at Lon Lon Ranch, and the Deku King in Termina, but Taki was really starting to test his patience. Hachibei had mentioned this woman would be difficult to talk to if he ever encountered her but didn't think it would be this much, especially after he helped save her life. 'Geez...excuuse me for saving your life back there,' he said sarcastically to himself.

"What was that?" Taki asked sharply, suddenly making Link nervous. Uh oh...did he say that out loud?

"Uh, well, I...uh," Link started before letting out an exasperated sigh. "Look...I just wanted to help," he replied rather softly, still somewhat intimidated by her tone towards him. "You...looked like you were on your last legs back there fighting that oni, and so I decided to lend a hand-"

"And all you've done is get yourself in far more trouble than you realize," she angrily retorted, surprising him and making him flinch again at her tone. This was certainly _not_ going the way Link expected it to. What was her problem? Why was she so upset about it?

Seeing his confused look, Taki merely responded with a sigh before closing her eyes and shaking her head at that. "As I expected," she stated, crossing her arms in emphasis. "You are in _way_ over your head, kid, and have absolutely _no idea_ what you have gotten yourself into, do you?" she added while giving him a very stern look. His continued silence only confirmed that.

"Yes, I thought so. Allow me to elaborate. Those people we fought and got away from were ninja of the Fu-Ma clan, the most secretive and dangerous clan in these lands of whom I used to be a part of. Anyone they perceive as an enemy, they kill. Without mercy. Anyone they deem a target, they pursue without hesitation. They will follow their targets anywhere and everywhere in the world until that target has been killed. _No matter how long it takes,"_ she emphasized. "And now that you so carelessly got involved in their affairs, they now perceive you as _both_ an enemy _and_ a target and will now hunt you down anywhere and everywhere you go for the rest of your days until you are dead...Child or not."

Link stayed silent as she explained. With everything he had faced up to this point—from monsters to dragons to evil spirits to witches and even the undead—Fu-Ma ninja didn't really concern him...though he had to admit, he had never been actively hunted in his previous adventures. Even Ganondorf hadn't done that, or sent anyone to do that, despite the fact he had been secretly watching his movements as he went from temple to temple to free Hyrule. That actually _would_ be something to cautious of, especially when Hachibei-sensei stated that ninja were not above killing someone in their sleep to complete a mission.

Before he could reply, she continued, her tone increasing in frustration as she spoke while also walking towards him. "AND they will put EXTRA effort in pursuing YOU in particular because of what you possess! Do you even realize what you have in your possession? And another thing! Just how did you acquire those shards in the first place!?"

By now she was right in front of Link, who was very much taken aback by the situation and too intimidated by her demeanor to move when she walked towards him as she spoke. While she wasn't outright yelling...yet, he could feel the barely restrained anger in her voice and tone. He actually was rather hurt on the inside with how she had been acting ever since they escaped, and so wasn't entirely sure how to respond in this situation. Usually whenever he helped someone, they gave him thanks and told him they appreciated his help, sometimes giving him a reward in doing so even though he never asked for, or expected, one in return. This reaction was just about the exact opposite, almost something new to him.

Growing up back home, despite how often Mido would bully him and call him names, Link would still help him in hopes that by doing so he would be more friendly to him. However, he usually just blew him off much like Taki was doing now. In fact when comparing the two, he thought Taki might actually be worse, if that was possible. Back then, he had Saria to help put Mido in his place every now and then to sort of help keep him in check. Now, he was on his own with a woman who was somehow upset at him for saving her life, and he wasn't sure why. Did that not matter to her at all?

Taki was glaring harshly at him as he remained silent, unable to form a reply. Seeing this, she shook her head again. Yep, this kid was way in over his head. She had to admit, the kid MAY have some moves and MAY have helped her escape, but she had a duty to perform in destroying Soul Edge, and having Fu-Man ninja pursue you didn't help matters. And she _certainly_ wasn't going to drag a child into it, either.

"(sigh), forget it kid. Just give the shards to me," she stated, outstretching her hand. "That way they'll follow me instead of you. Then you can head back home, wherever that is. Your parents must be worried about you."

Ok. Now Link wasn't so much hurt as much as he was insulted. He helped save her from the oni AND those Fu-Ma ninja AND was instrumental in their escape, and now she's treating him like some clueless, helpless child? None of those described Link…and he'll have words with those who argue that last one. And frankly, though Link wasn't one to show anger, she was really getting on his nerves.

"Hey!" he started, somewhat surprising Taki by his sudden change in demeanor. "I'm not some helpless kid! I can take care of myself too, in case you haven't noticed. I took out that oni you were up against and helped get us out of there from your former allies, both out of the temple and out of the temple grounds! What was I supposed to do? Just let you die back there?" That was probably the most Link had ever talked back to anyone. Actually, that was the first time he talked back like that, period. It seemed one could only take so much on a particularly sensitive issue. For Link, it was constantly being referred to (and treated as) a child instead of as an adult.

Perhaps that was because he _was_ an adult at one point in his life, if only physically. And with everything he had accomplished and experienced in his life that few, if any, other adults go through, he was used to being treated as one, and being called and treated like a kid often irritated him whenever they did—or at least a helpless and scared one. Even the guards at Clocktown in Termina showed him at least SOME respect when they saw he had a sword on him despite his age. Or perhaps it bothered him because it reminded him of how Mido had always bullied him growing up and kept calling him names, especially "Fairy-less" or "Mr. No-Fairy" which always had hurt him every time he did. At least after the seven year time-skip, he had the decency to acknowledge how he had treated him was wrong.

After that (surprising) outburst, Taki hesitated a little on that last part he said, tilting her head up while taking a deep breath before responding. "Be that as it may," she said a bit softer but her arm still outstretched, "this isn't something for a child to get involved in. You still don't fully realize just what you got yourself involved in, or what you have in your possession. As such, I suggest you give them to me, someone who has experience dealing with those shards you possess, and then head back home before the Fu-Ma find you again."

She saw the frustrated look on the boy was giving her upon saying that before he quickly looked down and let a sigh. Often, that was a sign that one had finally conceded a point or lost an argument, Taki thought to herself. Maybe he finally realized his situation and would give her the shards. "No," he harshly replied. She narrowed her eyes at that. It seemed he was too stubborn for his own good. She didn't want to, but if she had to take them by force, she would. Child or not. She was about to retort, only to be taken a back at the look the boy was now giving her, her eyes widened slightly at what she was looking at. The look the boy was giving her now was…fierce. Intense. Determined.

And above all, NOT the eyes of a child.

Before she could say anything, he continued. "I _do_ know what I got myself into ever since I arrived in this world, and I know _exactly_ what these shards are," he replied softly, but Taki could see the seriousness and sharpness in his tone. She actually felt...a slight bit intimidated by it (just a slight), surprising herself that she would feel that way about him at all. "They are shards of Soul Edge, an evil blade of great and terrible power that threatens my home, and I am on a mission to destroy it once and for all, and rid my home of its evil. I am going to be leaving for Europe where the evil blade is rumored to be, but I am taking the shards with me along the way. I don't care if those Fu-Ma will be after me now. I've faced far worse than anything they can do. If they decide to come after me, so be it. They won't get their hands on them. Ever."

Inside, she was VERY much surprised at everything he had said—not just _what_ he said but _how_ he said it. Outwardly, Taki shifted her head slightly to the side, very slowly crossing her arms in response as she processed this, trying not to let her surprise—or newfound wariness—of him, be known. Of all the responses (and reactions) she expected, that wasn't one of them. That wasn't the tone of a helpless, clueless child—that was the tone of a hardened and experienced warrior, one who had seen and been through much in his life...and then some. Just what had he, a kid maybe 15 at most, been through to have spoken with such conviction?

And then there was also _what_ he said that caught her attention. Apparently: A) His home was being threatened by Soul Edge; B) The boy not only found himself in _possession_ of shards of Soul Edge; C) He also _knew_ they were shards of Soul Edge; D) He knew _what_ Soul Edge was to begin with; and E) He said he was going to _destroy_ it? And also, F) What did he mean by, "ever since I arrived in this world?"

She carefully scrutinized him, looking for any sign he was just trying to act tough with her to save face like the clueless child she had originally took him for. However, the sharpness of his eyes, the tone of his voice, and the posture he had now before her told her this kid actually did seem to have a decent amount of skill and experience under his belt. They stayed that way in silence for over a minute, neither one breaking eye contact as Link looked back at her with that fierce expression before Taki finally spoke up again. "So...you claim to know what Soul Edge is _and_ you plan on destroying it? A child?" she scoffed before continuing. "Hmph. Alright, humor me. Just how does a child such as yourself plan on doing that?"

Link was still insulted how she kept referring to him as a child, but decided to ignore it and instead wordlessly drew out his sword, holding it out for her to see.

"Your sword? Hmph. Very funny, kid. I've fought Soul Edge before, and even _I_ couldn't destroy it. What makes you think with that sword _you_ can-?" The remaining words died in her throat when she suddenly sensed something, blinking once in surprise. It was very slight, and she almost missed it, but it seemed to be coming from…the sword?

She stayed silent, making sure it wasn't playing tricks on her, but she could definitely feel a faint energy coming from the boy's sword. She tilted her head at that while raising an eyebrow. Her raised eyebrow then turned into two raised and curious eyebrows as she uncrossed her arms and inspected it more closely, something that did not go unnoticed by Link who stayed silent as she continued observing it, leaning forward slightly to get a closer look. From what she could see, it looked to be a very well-crafted blade—she'll give him that much. And it actually looked pretty sharp as well. Her main focus, though, was the energy coming from it. It radiated a light, almost holy energy of some kind. It actually felt familiar, somehow. In fact, the last time she felt something like that was roughly seven years ago when that woman Sophitia had fought that pirate back in Spain-

Her eyes widened in surprise as felt her blade Mekki-Maru suddenly react in its sheath, causing it to glow and radiate energy. 'What in the…why is it acting up? I thought my new seals would prevent this from occurring again? Kuso, this isn't good!' She looked back at Link's sword, and to her surprise, saw it too was glowing and radiating energy. Too much.

"Quickly! Sheath your sword. Now!" Link saw the glow as well, and though he was confused why she was so worried, did as instructed. Instantly, the glow faded on both their swords, Taki noticed, no longer giving out any energy. 'Hmm...it seems if they get too close together, they react to each other's presence for some reason...and as long as they remain sheathed, neither one gives out any energy. Or at least not enough that can be detected long range.' Speaking of which-

"Come. We need to get out of here now. The Fu-Ma may have sensed that energy reaction. Hurry!" she shouted as she got on her horse and immediately took off.

"Hey! Wait for me!" Link shouted back as he rushed to catch up.

* * *

They rode for over half an hour, Taki leading the way with Link close beside her. He wasn't sure where they were going, but did not question her, lest it rile her up even more. By now it was getting too dark to see in the moonlight, and so she made the suggestion to set up camp.

The two gathered some firewood and made a fire while the horses laid down for a much needed rest. They then sat in silence for a while as Link watched the fire, while Taki. Taki looked at the boy as he admired the fire. This kid was just…she wasn't sure how to describe him. If it were anyone else, by now she would have just taken the shards, by force if necessary, and then let him fend for himself once they were out of danger, which she had seriously contemplated doing just that.

However, that…fierce look and response he gave her earlier brought her pause, and now that she felt more secure that the Fu-Ma would not likely find them in the near future (or at least for the night), she was curious enough to get some information from him. Particularly about Soul Edge, but also just where he was from and where he got his sword.

That was another thing. Just where did his arsenal of weapons all go? She could see the sword and shield, but where did the bow and arrows go? And the boomerang she saw earlier? Where did he keep those explosives? And why did his sword have such pure energy emanating from it and cause her own sword to react like it did? So many questions racked her brain as to what she wanted to know...

And as much as she didn't like to admit it, he _did_ save her life back there. Without him, they wouldn't even be having, or have had, a conversation to begin with. She would be dead, and the Fu-Ma (or what was left of it) would now be in possession of the Mekki-Maru under Geki's leadership, who was fiercely loyal to Toki and would likely face the same corruption as his predecessor. So with all that, she decided to give him the benefit of the doubt for the time being as she mentally went through a checklist in her mind on what to ask.

"Alright kid," she started, getting Link's attention who had been gently petting his horse that was laying by him—and which seemed to appreciate the affection, she noticed. "I have to admit, social conversation isn't really my strong suit...especially when being chased by ninja who have been after me for several years." With the way she said it, he wasn't sure if that was a joke or not to lighten the mood, but stayed quiet. "But after witnessing your...abilities, I must admit I am a little curious as to who you are, and so I would like to ask you a few questions." she stated as she clasped her hands and rested her chin on them.

Link blinked a little at that. Before, she was almost outright hostile towards him despite what he had done for her, and so he was a bit surprised at her...relatively calmer tone compared to earlier. She still did not seem bothered by how she talked to him earlier, and even now it sounded a bit more like a demand than a request to ask him questions. But she did seem to acknowledge she was a bit harsher than she may had intended it to be. Maybe she'll be easier to work with now?

Link knew from Hachibei that Taki often struggled to show _any_ emotion last Hachibei knew her. She often had a constant attitude about her to look and be strong, which required not only tough training but looking as strong and touch as possible as well. He said it was her way of trying to fit in and be accepted as "one of the boys" as he put it. Link knew the feeling of wanting to fit in, but was confused and rather upset that they seemed to judge by a person's gender. Why did that matter? It certainly wasn't like that back home that he could tell. Just ask Impa. Or Zelda. Or the whole Gerudo tribe for that matter, a warrior race consisting only of women...other than a certain Gerudo king who will remain nameless. Deciding it might be the best he could get out of her, Link accepted it. "Um...alright. What would you like to know?"

"Perhaps we should start with introductions. I am Taki of the Fu-Ma clan."

Well that was a start, he thought. "My name is Link. A pleasure to meet you, Taki," he replied. Almost cheerfully, which mentally caused Taki to raise an eyebrow at that. After how she had treated him earlier, she did not expect that response, but shrugged that off as she continued.

"Link, huh? And where are you from, Link?" As soon as she asked that, she immediately noticed a slight change of posture indicating nervousness. 'Hmm, looks like he doesn't want to share that piece of information.'

Link, meanwhile, had a feeling it sounded like this would turn into his talk with Hachibei, which was quite a long conversation to explain everything, and he doubted Taki was in the mood for such a long conversation anyway. Especially when she already didn't seem to like him that much despite saving her life. Then a thought came to him. 'Hmm…Maybe if I mention I know Hachibei-sensei and Chie, she'll be more receptive to me?' he thought to himself before finally speaking. "I am from a place called Hyrule. I doubt anyone here knows where it is, though," he answered, echoing his previous response to Hachibei.

Taki sunk her chin lower in her hands. He gave a name to his home, but not a location. 'So, he's being selective of what answers he gives? Hmm. This might be more difficult than I thought.' Though at the same time, she lightly applauded him for also not being so forthcoming to a relative stranger, which she half expected him to do.

"Hmm…Hyrule. Yes, I can't say I have heard of it myself. You mentioned you were going to Europe. Is that where your home lies, then? Somewhere in Europe? Like...England? Switzerland? Ireland, perhaps?...What's so funny?" she asked a little suspiciously when Link started chuckling for some reason.

Link shook his head but still was smiling. "Nothing. It's just that Hachibei-sensei asked me a similar question when he asked me where I was from."

Now, THAT got her attention. So much so, she wasn't sure if she heard him correctly. "What did…Did you just say 'Hachibei?' As in, 'Hachibei no Fu-Man?'"

Link gave a smile at her reaction and nodded. 'It seems she _was_ more receptive after all when I mentioned his name.'

"Mm, hm. He explained how you were declared a nuke-nin for taking the Mekki-Maru and hiding it from the Fu-Ma, whom you used to be a member."

Taki blinked in surprise, eyes widened slightly in surprise and her mouth was even open a bit. She rarely showed emotion of any kind. At all. Some of her fellow Fu-Ma ninja thought she was particularly cold in her emotions compared to others, even Geki. For her to show any emotion beyond annoyance or anger was an accomplishment in and of itself, they had often joked...which often prompted Taki to put a sword near their throats in the process whenever she overheard that. Or throw shuriken near their nether regions—which was _almost_ enough for her to let out a smirk in the process.

Despite this, she was still unsure of him actually meeting Hachibei, whom was notoriously difficult to find. Minus the specific of the Mekki-Maru, what he shared wasn't exactly uncommon knowledge in these parts, and so he could have simply overheard that somewhere. She narrowed her eyes again as she looked back at Link. Then another thought came to her. "Hmm, and you say you _met_ Hachibei-sama? And just _where_ did you encounter him? And why did you call him Hachibei- _sensei_?" she asked suspiciously, her previously harsher tone appearing once again.

Link was a little taken aback at that. He figured she would have been calmer at knowing that he knew Hachibei. Apparently she didn't believe him yet? "I met him about a month ago after his daughter Chie saved me from drowning in a river. He trained me for a bit before-"

"What!?" Link jumped a bit in surprise at her interruption. That was probably the biggest reaction he had seen from her all night. And for good reason.

Her eyes were now completely wide open with shock on her normally stoic face. "Did you-did you say Chie?" she said rather hesitantly?

"Uh huh…" he answered slowly. "Chie. Your childhood friend."

She stayed in shock for but a moment before shaking her head, an angry look suddenly appearing on her face. "No, I don't believe you!" she shouted as she quickly stood up, startling Link and the horses a bit, but she paid them no mind.

"But...it's the truth," he started as he stood up to try to calm her down-

"DO NOT LIE TO ME, BOY!" she yelled before suddenly pulling out her second blade Rekki-Maru and held it out threateningly towards him, who held his hands up in a placating gesture in response, her sword just a foot away from his face. Alright. _Now_ , Link was getting nervous. Taki had spoken harshly to him before, but this was the first time she had outright yelled at him. Or threatened him. And the look on her face gave him the impression she was ready to kill him if he spoke again. 'Ho, boy...what do I do now?' he worriedly thought to himself before Taki continued speaking.

" _Chie_ is dead," she said threateningly, her tone increasing in fury as she slowly walked towards Link, who slowly backed up with his hands still in front of him as if trying not to anger her. "She has been for nearly seven years now. _I_ learned that from Li Long himself with whom she had relations with. She was killed at an inn by Mitsurugi, the One-Man-Army himself and whom Li Long had since been hunting for revenge before he disappeared and was never heard from again! There is NO way she is still alive! And I will NOT have you dishonoring her memory by making up lies declaring you've met and befriended her when she has LONG since been dead!" she shouted in fury as she continued walking towards him as he backed up, pressing her sword closer to Link's face.

A bead of sweat formed on Link's face at that. He knew Taki was not an enemy of any kind, and so had not drawn his sword in response, not wanting to anger her further. The blade right in front of him, though, was telling him that was looking less and less like an option at this point. He nervously swallowed a lump in his throat, trying to figure out what to do to calm her down. 'Ok, you can do this Link...just stay calm...and try not to think of the sword just inches from your face...'

Finally, Link took a deep breath before calmly replying...while also hoping she didn't try to kill him. "No...she is very much alive and well. Hachibei-sensei said she _was_ heavily wounded and unconscious for a while, but she _did_ wake up from her injuries about a week later. She then stated _it wasn't Mitsurugi_ that nearly killed her, but a _Fu-Ma ninja_ , though Mitsurugi _was_ the one that started that fight," he stated, hoping that by emphasizing who the real culprit was, it would calm her down more.

For a moment, it looked like he had finally gotten through to her as she stopped walking towards him and had slight look of contemplation on her face, but she shook her head again in denial. "No, that can't be true. Regardless of who attacked her, I would have heard about it through my network of contacts, and I never received any hint of her survival! Otherwise, I would have looked for Chie and verified it myself _years_ ago!"

"But...it's the truth! I am not making this up!"

"ENOUGH!" she yelled out, suddenly moving forward and thrust her sword at Link's face, who narrowly dodged to the side, only to face more swings from Taki. Link narrowly dodged each one, but after ducking underneath a slash to his head, he received a hard kick straight to his chest, pushing him back several feet. Taki did not waste time, quickly moving in again with a downward strike, only for Link to lock swords with hers after narrowly drawing his sword in time. "I'm through with words, boy," she declared before sending Link back again with another hard kick to the midsection.

"I am taking those shards _now_. Give them to me, and we'll part ways with no further hostilities between us. Refuse..." she started, getting into her fighting stance, "and I will not hesitate to kill you. Regardless if you saved my life or not," she stated coldly, with no hesitation in her voice.

Link could not help but feel saddened at this turn of events. He thought in mentioning their mutual friend and mentor, it would help earn her trust. And somehow the exact opposite happened, and instead, she now thinks he had insulted her and her friend Chie whom she still thought was dead. "Taki, please! We are not enemies! If you'll just listen-"

The words died in his throat as Taki attacked him once again. She gave a downward cross swing to Link's chest, followed by a slash in the other direction before making a forward thrust. Link parried the first two strikes before leaning back heavily and to the side to avoid the spinning thrust, and used his own momentum to spin around himself. As he spun, he pulled out his shield and swung his shield arm out, grazing her in the shoulder. The sudden change in momentum left her out of position, forcing her to be on the defensive as Link attacked with multiple slashes before giving a kick of his own to her already wounded stomach. She staggered back, expecting to receive a follow-up strike and keep her on the defensive.

She was surprised when no such attack came, as Link instead stayed where he was after the kick. She looked at him in confusion for a bit before scoffing."Hmph. You should have continued your attack, kid," she stated before getting into position again. "Granting your enemy such a reprieve will cost you on the battlefield,"

"But that's just it! We're not enemies, Taki. We're on the same-," Link tried to say same 'side' but Taki was true to her declaration and wasted no words in attacking again. She was already in grief at having killed her master, which Link suspected was likely in self-defense, and that combined with her thinking he insulted and dishonored her friend, whom she believed was long dead, seemed to have pushed her beyond reason. It seemed he had no choice but to fight her to get her to listen to reason, as he reluctantly readied himself. She moved forward and gave a pair of swings, first to her left and then right, both hitting against his shield before giving a hard, spinning upward slash.

The last strike pushed Link's shield to the side, of which she tried to follow with a left kick, but he countered with a thrust with his sword, lightly grazing her right thigh. However, he overextended himself, allowing Taki to take advantage of his momentum and pull him forward with her left arm to keep him off balance and elbow him in the right side of the face. Continuing her momentum, she then gave a spinning kick to the back of his head she tried to make earlier, the combined forces knocking him hard to the ground. She tried to continue her assault, but as soon as she got close, she was tripped up from a footsweep by Link, who quickly got up to his feet and retreated back towards the campsite.

'Oh no, you don't!' she thought as she quickly got to her feet and charged again. When she caught up, she swung twice again, this time Link parried with his sword instead of his shield. Seeing this, instead of a spinning upward slash, she gave a spinning thrust, catching Link off guard who was expecting the former. He tried to dodge, but he was out of position and her blade nipped him in the right shoulder. On instinct, he used his spinning momentum and gave a backhand with his shield, hitting her hard in the upper back/lower neck. Taking advantage this time, he thrust towards her stomach again, which Taki took a step back to dodge and was forced to parry a series of follow-up strikes, keeping her on the defensive.

She suddenly found herself surprised as Link unleashed a series of very rapid thrusts towards her. She narrowly deflected each one, but on the last one, she had to lean back heavily to avoid. Link tried to continue but stepped back slightly to avoid a counter swing. The two both stepped back slightly after that, gaining a little breathing room as they tried to plan their next move.

Taki found herself breathing a little heavier than expected already while Link looked calm, save for the hesitant look on his face. He was reluctant to fight, that was for sure, but he was apparently much faster than he looked, especially after that last set of attacks. 'Kuso...This will be much harder than I thought.'

They circled around each other, waiting for the other to make the next move. Finally after about half a minute, Taki suddenly charged forward, but rather than lead with a sword, she suddenly rolled on the ground and gave a series of spin kicks, spinning on her back to do so. Link awkwardly stepped back and blocked the surprise attack with his shield, only to get knocked down as Taki suddenly used her momentum to quickly maneuver into a crouching position and then immediately launch herself at Link who was left wide open to attack, tackling him down. As soon as they landed, though, Link quickly kicked her off to prevent any follow-up attack.

Undaunted, Taki quickly used a handstand and landed on her feet before turning around and briefly sheathing her blade as she continued her assault. Link's eyes narrowed at that, seeing she was going to use iaijutsu. 'Seems to be a popular trick in this land,' Link mused to himself. He dodged the expected first strike from the iaijutsu, then blocked the follow-up strikes with his sword and shield before ducking under a kick, spinning around to keep his balance. Link countered with a cross slash during his spin, which Taki deflected before giving a straight kick to Taki. However, she saw it coming and deflected it as well, following it up with a thrust that Link was forced to step back and parry before countering with an overhead strike, which Taki blocked straight on, the two locking swords.

Taki found herself frustrated as she struggled to overpower her smaller opponent. Normally she wouldn't be having this much trouble, despite the skill she briefly saw from him earlier in the night. But she knew why—she was only using Rekki-Maru and not also Mekki-Maru. In addition, she was not using any of her ki to use her more advanced techniques as she was drained from her prior battles. However, if she resorted to such tactics, she knew the Fu-Ma might be able to detect their presence, despite the head start they had on them earlier. 'And chances are, this kid is fully aware of it too. In fact...it looks like he is holding back himself as well. He's not fighting in such a way as to overwhelm my defenses—merely keeping me at bay for the most part. Why...Of course! He's trying to wear me down!'

Taki was still not 100% after the fights at the temple. She still had her injuries, which were progressively affecting her as the fight continued, especially with Link attacking her stomach. A clever strategy on his part, she thought. Link, however, was fresh from his injuries, almost as if he never suffered any at all and did not look to have fought at all prior to meeting her, which allowed him to better dictate the pace of the battle. At this rate, the combined handicaps against her will likely result in her defeat—and that was absolutely unacceptable to Taki. She would NOT let him insult her friend without making him pay. Though risky, she decided it was necessary in this case. When she saw Link add more force to push her back, she made her move.

Using the added force, she jumped back slightly and parried the pair of slashes Link followed up with to keep her on the defensive. 'Now!' she said to herself as she used her momentum to spin to her left and pull out Mekki-Maru with a reverse-grip before thrusting it hard towards Link. Link, surprised from the move, managed to move his shield in time to block it. However, the hard thrust deflected it off to his right, and Taki followed by jumping forward and connecting with a double-kick. She first connected with a left kick to the chest, which immediately was followed with a powerful kick to his face, launching Link back almost ten feet.

Link shook his head as he came to a stop, slightly dizzied from the unexpected attack when he heard a loud "CHAA!" cry. His eyes suddenly widened as he saw Taki make a fast diving strike in the air right at him. Link narrowly kicked his feet up into a backflip from the ground to dodge, only to continue moving backwards on the defensive as Taki kept up her assault. He suddenly found it more difficult to keep her at bay as she suddenly started using her second sword Mekki-Maru. He was rather worried about that, not just because it allowed her to get the upper hand, but of the energy he knew it released when unsheathed, of which Taki said the Fu-Ma could possibly detect.

He had no more time to ponder this as he blocked another set of three strikes, the latter he deflected with his shield as he slowly backed up as she attacked. He then ducked a high kick to his head and countered with a slash of his own which Taki blocked, the two locking blades briefly in the process. Link, being fresher of the two, shoved her back to slow down her offensive and moved to strike, only to have to slow down to block a strike from Taki's second blade with his shield. It was at that point Link noticed something as he continued dodging and parrying her attacks. Despite her using her second sword, she had thus far only swung Mekki-Maru at him but without forcing him to block with his sword. It was always with his shield or otherwise he dodged entirely...

'That's it! She's deliberately avoiding clashing swords with Mekki-Maru! After that glowing thing with the swords, she must be worried of them clashing and so is timing her strikes to avoid that from happening!' Link deduced as he blocked another strike, locking swords again with her main sword. 'Ergh...don't necessarily blame her. I don't want to find out what would happen if they did. But now I can better anticipate her moves,' he thought as he moved back from a kick from Taki.

They traded blows again, engaging a series of strikes and thrusts that were parried and dodged. However, Link was having a much easier time now, better timing his blocks to block her second sword. Taki narrowed her eyes at this development. She found herself tiring again at trying to find an opening. Though Link had not managed to hit her either, she suspected he was still trying to wear her down as opposed to trying to kill her. 'Foolish boy. Your enemy will show no mercy, and so you should show none in return. Time to finish this.'

Although she was low on energy, all she needed was one fatal blow to end this fight. Then she could take the shards and escape on her horse and leave him to the Fu-Ma, if they manage to find their location. She backed off a bit by a tree and channeled her ki as she sheathed her blades. She then briefly turned around, initially confusing Link, before suddenly jumping backwards high into the air. Still using her ki, she channeled it through her legs so her momentum would allow her to not only quickly jump high in the air but also make a large backflip. Once she started descending, she channeled her ki so as to quickly fall and land behind Link, the move taking only a single second to complete. While in mid-air, though, just as she was over Link, she hurled three shuriken at him as a distraction. As soon as she landed, she charged forward at the surprised Link, who narrowly blocked the shuriken but left him out of position.

Link was then grazed in the right side of his chest as he tried to dodge a thrust. Still out of position, he managed to back up parry another set of blows, only to suddenly receive a powerful palm strike to his stomach. The force of the blow sent him backwards, his back hitting the tree he had hoped to corner Taki at, but he still managed to stay on his feet, albeit keeled over as he looked up towards Taki. She tried to follow with a thrust to his face and finish him off, but she was a split second too slow as Link instead moved forward and used his position to jump high into the air and into a flip, kicking her hard in the chin in the process and staggering her back. His jump launched him over 15 feet in the air, with Taki still right below him, and as he descended, he followed with an overhead strike.

Taki was caught completely off guard by Link's last move, thinking she finally had him, but her fatigue cost her as her head snapped back from the kick to her chin. As she opened her eyes, they widened at seeing the attack coming from above. Out of instinct, she raised both blades to block the attack, but in her haste, she crossed her swords—with Mekki-Maru on top. And when Link's sword made contact...the swords of opposite energy reacted.

A sudden shockwave erupted from the point of impact. Both of them yelled out in surprise and pain from the unexpected explosion as they were both blown back. Taki felt as if she was hit by a falling boulder as her upper body primarily absorbed the impact as she hit the ground. Thankfully, her blades did not recoil back into her, but the resulting impacts of the shockwave and hitting the ground made her drop both her blades when she landed, before the added momentum made her do half a somersault and land on her front.

Link was similarly affected, though from his falling position in the air, the shockwave resulted in him essentially becoming almost entirely upside-down in under a second—which caused him to land hard on his head and his momentum make him somersault backwards before landing and sliding on his back, releasing his grip on his sword and shield as he stopped.

They both tried to get up, but after a few moments of struggling, they collapsed into unconsciousness.

* * *

 **A/N: And done! Hooooly crap, that took a lot longer than I thought. Man, I think I reworked this chapter dozens of times, trying to get the interaction right between Link and Taki. And essentially posting a mulligan of a chapter didn't help...again, sorry bout that.**

 **I found when I changed the wording or the order of the wording by just a little bit, it seemed to greatly impact the flow and tone of the story, in turn requiring changes in other parts, and so it took many edits to try to get it right the way I wanted it.**

 **I honestly have only played SC II as I never got a PlayStation or X-Box system, so anything outside of that I researched online regarding stories and plot lines. SC V implied Toki could still be alive, but I found that didn't make sense. If somehow Toki survived his fight with Taki, how could he have escaped the temple without being pursued by Taki, weakened and exhausted as he was? And wouldn't he have returned to the Fu-Ma in that seventeen year stretch if he was alive?**

 **So, I thought it made more sense for him to not survive the encounter. Of course, since SC V technically doesn't exist with the reboot of the series, it's probably a moot point.**

 **Some might be mad or disagree with how cold Taki may have been to Link, perhaps being a little out of character even with her background as a ninja, as going so far as to try to kill him possibly seeming too much in the way I presented it. Keep in mind, she just lost her master and the closest thing to a father by her own hands. That's enough to make anyone emotional and not think straight, no matter how trained one is in controlling their emotions. Add in suddenly having to look after the well-being of another, a young teenager no less, who also has shards of Soul Edge on him, AND her enemies discover this fact, and that's just a recipe for trouble in Taki's mind. And so, her first thought would likely be to escape, take the shards from the boy at first chance, and then get away from him as far as possible so as not to burden him with her problems. That was my reasoning for why she acted the way she did towards Link, anyway.**

 **In regards to Taki thinking Chie was dead, from what I could gather, she last saw Chie alive after taking the Mekki-Maru from Hachibei, and Li Long was there, too. As such, Chie had to have been attacked at some point _after_ that, since Li Long was told by _Hachibei_ that Chie was dead in the Soul Edge canon. After finding out she was actually alive, Hachibei—being the ninja he is—would have wanted to keep it a secret that his daughter survived, and would likely have kept word from spreading about that as much as possible by spreading false information that she had indeed died to fool the rest of the Fu-Ma clan, and thus, keep her safe. This unfortunately also meant fooling Taki, which I reason would have unintentionally made her act colder to those around her, friend and foe alike, after thinking she lost her only friend in life.**

 **From what I read, Mekki-Maru could be detected even by common folk after Taki fused it with a shard of Soul Edge and so made it easier for the Fu-Ma to track her location. And yet, the Soul Calibur series canon made no indication that the Fu-Ma found her on a regular basis on her journeys in Europe. As such, I reasoned that after seven years since that incident she would likely have made stronger seals in that time to suppress its energy from radiating like it usually did, and thus make it harder for the Fu-Ma to track her.**

 **But now, the unexpected force from Link's sword colliding with Taki's Mekki-Maru knocked them both out. What will happen to them now?**

 **Find out next time!**

 **For now, this is Agent Ghost-Writer 000 signing off.**


	12. Chapter 12 - Escape

**.**

This is a sentence. - Narration. No character speaking or thinking.

"This is a sentence." - Character speaking out loud.

'This is a sentence.' - Character speaking in his/her head.

This _is_ a sentence. - Emphasis placed on the italic word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

This IS a sentence. - Same as with the single italic, just a variation of expressing the emphasis.

 _This is a sentence. -_ All italics means the event is happening in a dream or flashback of which I would give a quick note prior saying a dream or flashback is occurring.

 _This_ is _a sentence_. - During a dream or flashback, emphasis placed in the normal text word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

 **.**

 **I do not own The Legend of Zelda or Soul Calibur**

* * *

 **Chapter 12 – Escape**

Link didn't know how long he had been out as he slowly regained consciousness. He rubbed his head and neck that were still sore from the sudden impact from earlier, a little surprised he wasn't paralyzed. He shook his head as he tried to get up, only to feel something quickly shove him back down hard. He shook his head again, trying to get rid of the cobwebs in his head before opening his eyes. He blinked a bit, but could tell it was still night time as it was still dark out, and a flickering light to the side indicated their campfire was still going. But once his eyes were in focus, they suddenly widened as he saw a blade poised directly in front of him at his neck. That got him to freeze in place as he looked at the person holding the other end of the blade.

He saw the disheveled look of Taki kneeling next to him, who looked banged and beat up from their fight, as well as from that explosion. Her face was bruised and scratched in a number of places, a part of her hair slightly out of place in its ponytail as well. "Just in time," she said tiredly but in satisfaction.

Link looked confused at that. "Just in time?...for what?"

"I got to you just in time...before you could fully recover," she explained. "I only just regained consciousness as well, but seeing you were still here and alive, I got to you just in time to kill you...demon."

"Wha-Demon? What are you-"

"Your ears."

That made Link widen his eyes a bit, instinctively shifting his eyes toward said features. She knew? How...of course. 'That...whatever it was that happened must have blown back my cap...at least enough for her to notice,' he thought ruefully, his cap still on but was pushed back slightly. 'But I wished she would have found out a different way...and now she thinks I'm a demon...Great.'

"Yes, I know everything now. You had me fooled for awhile, but now I see it was just an elaborate plan to get me to drop my guard, then take Mekki-Maru for yourself at first chance. Very clever, actually. Especially with what happened at the temple to help win my trust."

"What? Taki, no. I-" Link pleaded, trying to get her to listen to reason before pausing a bit as she put her sword against his neck. "I'm not a demon. I'm just not...from here. Or this world, for that matter. I'm-"

"If you're not from this world, then you are from hell, demon," she interrupted, "A servant of the evil blade collecting shards for it. And no doubt you killed someone who _truly_ was out to destroy it. That was how you got your sword."

Link could only look in despair at his situation. Her stubbornness had resulted in them fighting and getting a sword against his neck, with her thinking he was the exact opposite of what she believed he was.

"You're evil ends now, demon," she declared as she prepared to stab his throat. "Any last words?"

Link had hoped to reason with her. After saving her at the temple AND helping her in eluding their pursuers, he would think that would help in getting her to trust him. But not to trick her, simply befriend her. Nothing more. He still hoped they could, and despite his situation, thought there was still a way. Throughout their fight, he wanted to tell her something from Hachibei but never had the opportunity to say it as she never gave him a chance. And at this point, this would be the only chance he would get. Before they parted, Hachibei told Link that if he were to ever encounter Taki, and she was unwilling to believe anything about meeting him, Chie, or anything else, give her a certain message for him.

'Well, here goes,' Link thought as made a small nod in to Taki's question. "Just a message from Hachibei-sensei," he started, which Taki narrowed her eyes at. "Keep your guard up Taki...particularly, your left side."

For the second time tonight (a record for her, actually), her eyes widened in total shock and also let out a small gasp of surprise. While occasionally sparring and training with Hachibei as she was growing up, that was a phrase he said to her often whenever she faltered or got hit on that side, which happened rather frequently back then. Later, he would use it in a jokingly manner whenever they parted; and eventually, it evolved into an expression that would become a sign of their trust and student/teacher relationship. Only _he_ ever said that to her and never shared that phrase with anyone else. No one else in the Fu-Ma clan knew of that expression—not even her foster father, Toki.

She tried to deny him ever knowing Hachibei, that it was just another trick. And yet...

She found her resolve struggling, pulling her sword back just a bit, allowing Link to sit up a little. "How...how do you know-"

"Look out-AHHH!"

Taki was thoroughly caught off guard as suddenly Link had grabbed her and pulled her down while also maneuvering himself over her. Her instincts finally took over as she hurriedly moved to push him off of her, only to freeze in surprise and shock again.

Lodged in his backside where three shuriken.

"Or rather, her _backside_ in this case," a voice quipped before yelling. "Over here!"

Taki turned to the side and saw a ninja about twenty feet away, whose posture indicated he had thrown the shuriken at him—or rather, at _her_. As he approached, two more ninja ran in from her right, followed a few seconds more by one more from her left, who was noticeably missing an arm as he surveyed the scene.

"Good work, Doki," Geki said to the one who wounded Link.

"Thank you, Geki-sama," the one known as Doki acknowledged. Enraged, Taki gripped her sword and began to stand up-

"Don't even think about it, traitor," Geki threatened as he and his fellow ninja quickly moved and surrounded Link and Taki before she had a chance to stand, swords drawn and ready to strike as they each stood but a few feet away from the two in a circle. "You are surrounded. And there's no green light to save you this time. Hmm..." he said to himself as he looked between Taki and the injured Link.

"I must say, a rather unusual turn of events."

"H-How...How did...you find us?" Link slowly asked, who struggled to look at Geki.

"Save your strength, Link," Taki stated as she tried to figure out how to get out of this.

"Hmph. Rather obvious, isn't it gaijin?" he replied as he gave a wry look. "We managed to detect your general location from that massive energy spike earlier. I don't know yet what the two of you did to cause it, but after half an hour of heading in this area, we split up a bit to widen our search to try to isolate it. Then some time later, we found one of the horses you had stolen from us when you escaped. No doubt it got spooked from that energy spike and ran off," he said as he gestured behind him. Link looked where he gestured and saw the horses being watched by two more ninja, along with those they had likely rode in on.

"Keep that horse under control, Gaki," he said to his comrade, who was struggling with one of them. Link, despite his pain, saw the horse in question and his eyes briefly widened as he saw a familiar mark on its forehead—a white diamond. The same horse he rode on earlier.

"I'm trying, Geki-sama. She's proving to be quite difficult for some reason," Gaki replied, wrestling with the reins before his fellow ninja gave him a hand to calm her down.

"Now then," Geki continued, getting their attention again. "While I'm not entirely sure what happened, no doubt the two of you had a falling out of some kind or else we likely would not have found you. Over the shards I imagine?" he asked as he looked between the two. His eyes widened a fraction of a second as he looked at Link's ears. "Or something else, perhaps?...Such as those ears?"

The two stayed silent, though both gritted their teeth in response. One more in anger, one more in pain.

"Regardless, you, gaijin, are coming with us. Not only do you have something we are after, but we want to know what _you_ know about those shards. Obey, and you will live. Resist," he stated before he and his comrades got into a fighting stance, "and you will perish."

"...And...Taki?" Link slowly asked as he tried to work out his next move.

"She dies either way," Geki replied, which made Link narrow his eyes at that.

"What does that matter to you, gaijin?" Link turned to another ninja, Doki if he remembered right, who spoke up after seeing Link's reaction. "She had a sword to your throat before I attacked her from behind. And yet you took the hit for her. Why would _you_ care what happened to her?"

"Is that so?" Geki commented, as he hadn't arrived in time to see that part, his view obstructed while weaving through the trees to their location.

"Indeed," Doki replied before looking back at Link. "If it wasn't for the fact I was ordered to keep you alive, I would have waited until AFTER she killed you before striking her. You should be grateful, kid."

"I care (cough) about Taki...because she is my friend!" Link declared, getting everyone's attention with surprise on their faces, including Taki's, who was possibly the _most_ surprised of the bunch.

'He thinks...I'm his friend?' she thought in disbelief. A sentiment shared by the other Fu-Ma who gave a snort in disbelief.

"You're...friend?" Geki echoed, as if trying not to laugh. "She nearly kills you and you still consider her a 'friend?' Ha! Don't make me laugh."

He paused a bit, shaking his head a bit at the boy's declaration. "You have a strange way of seeing someone as a _friend_ kid. And besides, I've known Taki for years. Taki doesn't _have_ friends. Certainly not after _Chie_ was killed," he mockingly added as he smirked at her, making Taki grit her teeth in anger at that.

"(cough) She is," Link replied, getting their attention again. "All we had was just a (cough) misunderstanding...That's all," he finished, glancing at Taki as he said that who was still looking at him surprise. Despite this, she clearly saw Link's eyes gesture towards his left, which was where...a flash of realization adorned her face before she quickly hid it, hoping the others did not catch it. He then coughed several times, leaning his head towards the ground.

"Foolish boy, I said save your strength," she angrily repeated, bringing her face near Link's-

"When I tell you...get down fast." It was barely a whisper, but she heard it...and the seriousness in his tone. She looked at him for a bit, wondering exactly what he had planned...and if she should let him carry it out. They briefly locked eyes for but a moment, but the serious look in his eye was enough for her to finally come to a decision as she continued acting like nothing happened.

"Ha-ha-ha! A 'misunderstanding?' That's rich," Geki bellowed out, with his fellow ninja chuckling a bit as well. "The only 'misunderstanding' you had was getting in our way. And it will cost you dearly...unless you agree to my terms. Surrender now, or die along with your _friend_ ," he mocked, no longer joking around.

"(cough) Even if I did...you'll just (cough) kill me too," Link replied, "And like I said," he started as he gripped his sword laying near him and slowly got to one knee, "Taki is my friend...and I ALWAYS protect my friends," a determined look adorning his face as he looked up at Geki, despite the pain coursing through him.

Geki was momentarily surprised at the look the boy was giving him before quickly narrowing them. "You will regret your decision, boy," he said threateningly. "Alright, no more words! Kill them both-"

"NOW!"

The words died in Geki's throat as he suddenly sensed a spike of energy coming from the boy while Taki quickly dove down and covered her head, not knowing what Link was going to do. Geki only had time to raise his eyebrows in surprise as Link suddenly started rapidly spinning in circles with his sword. Burning flames engulfed his sword and expanded outward as he continued spinning. The surprise attack hit all Fu-Ma surrounding him, burning and cutting their abdomens, and the sudden force of wind added to it knocked them down as well.

When he finally stopped, he briefly looked around, making sure he got them before dropping to one knee in pain, coughing up more blood as he did so. He only stayed that way for a few moments before he felt someone pull him up. "Come on! We have to move now!" Taki shouted as she leaned down and quickly sheath his sword for him before heaving him over her shoulder and started running.

"Stop them!" she heard behind her as she got past the nearest Fu-Ma Link had struck earlier.

At the same time this had occurred, just after Link began his attack, the horse with the white diamond on its forehead had started bucking wildly, quickly throwing off the unwanted rider who was not prepared for the sudden move and then kicked ninja in the head with her back hooves, killing him instantly.

His comrade, who was sitting on another horse, quickly saw what Link and Taki were planning to do and pulled out a pair of kunai to kill the horse and prevent their escape, as well as avenge his comrade's death. However, before he could make his throw, he was interrupted as Taki hit him in his throwing shoulder with a shuriken, startling him and making him drop his kunai.

'There goes my last shuriken,' she thought to herself, but to her surprise, she saw the horse she had assisted was actually running straight towards them.

'It seems Link connected with the horse more than I thought,' she said to herself as the horse slowed down and even bent down to make it easier for them to get on her. "HIYAH!" she shouted upon hopping on with Link sitting behind her as the horse began running at high speed. However, she suddenly had to deflect a sword coming at her from the side.

"You're not getting away that easily!" a Fu-Ma shouted, the same one she hit earlier in the right shoulder and was now fighting with his left. They engaged in a sword-duel on horseback, the horses struggling not to bump and trip into each other as they did so. The Fu-Ma suddenly maneuvered himself and kicked Taki in her wounded abdomen. The distraction worked as it forced her to grab it in pain and try to back off with her horse. The Fu-Ma took the time to pull out another pair of kunai. He prepared to throw them, only to suddenly get bashed hard in the face from something hitting him. The impact was hard enough to knock him off his horse, almost taking the horse with him.

He briefly shook his head, idly wondering what had hit him, only to widen his eyes as he heard a hissing sound right by him. He turned and saw a familiar large and round object five feet behind him...with a lit fuse in it. "Kuso!" he shouted as he dove away just as it exploded. The force of the explosion blew him off course as he rolled around a couple times, injured but alive.

"Blast it!" Geki shouted as their horses started bucking slightly.

The other ninja had managed to saddle their horses when Taki engaged in the sword-duel on horseback. However, by the time the bomb went off, the horses were but thirty feet away at most, and the blast and loud noise scared them once more as they struggled with their riders to avoid going further.

"I am NOT losing them second time. Hurry! Don't let them get away!"

* * *

'Well, this looks familiar,' Taki thought to herself as they gained some distance from their pursuers. She was amazed Link had both the awareness of the situation, and the strength, to throw that bomb at him. 'Still not sure just where he pulled that from, though.'

But despite this good fortune, she was faced with another problem. It was still dark out and they were in the woods instead of an open plain. This prevented her from running the horse at high speed like she wanted. Add to the fact Link still had three shuriken lodged in his back, she didn't have much time to get him to safety and nurse his injuries.

"Yaah!"

A sudden yelp from Link got her attention as she turned behind her. "Link, are you-"

"Eee-yah!" Her eyes widened a bit as she saw two bloodied shuriken in his hand.

"Link! What are you doing!?" she shouted as he reached for the third one. "Link, stop! You'll bleed out before I can treat your injuries! We need to get further away-"

But Link ignored her as he pulled out the last one with another painful yell. "Grrr...Damn it, Link!" she muttered in frustration.

With no choice, she ordered the horse to slow down to a stop, which reluctantly obeyed, hoping she had enough time before the Fu-Ma could catch up to them. She dismounted immediately, then quickly but gently helped Link off.

"Damn it, Link. Why are you being so stubborn?" she stated in a mix of anger yet also a little concern. The wounds were still bleeding, and she wasn't sure how much he had lost already. Having some fire-type ninpo, she summoned some of her ki to try and cauterize his wounds to stop the bleeding, only to stop when Link started reaching into his tunic...and seemed to be muttering something.

"Link, what are you-"

"Borta!" she heard him state, and to her astonishment, a glass bottle with some kind of blue liquid inside appeared as if out of nowhere. It had a cork sealed at the top, but when Link tried to pull it out, his strength left him and he fell on his stomach. Taki wasn't sure what potion or elixir the bottle consisted of, but she only hesitated for but a moment to understand what he was trying to do.

"Hang on, Link," she assured him as she uncorked the bottle. She gently turned Link on his back and then sat him up just enough to make it easier to drink. She could tell he was losing consciousness. "Hope I'm not too late. I don't know what this is, but I sure hope it was worth pulling out the shuriken for. Here. Swallow," she said as she raised the bottle to Link's lips.

She put in a sip at first, hoping Link was conscious enough to do just that. No reaction.

She raised a little more, hoping to get something from him...still nothing. "Come on, Link. Don't die on me now!" she muttered softly to herself.

It was strange for her to be so concerned by another like this. She had helped dying people before—that Sophitia woman who fought that pirate seven years ago coming to mind—but she always maintained a cool composure and never panicked. And yet for some reason, she couldn't help but feel worried about the boy.

Boy, she thought. Not demon, like she had thought earlier. As much as she hated to admit it, she had made a serious error of judgment. In other words, she made a mistake—something she would never admit out loud. And now for the first time in her life, she was starting to regret her actions and hoped it wasn't too late to correct it.

"Come on," she stated as she tipped another sip into his mouth, "don't make all this be for naught..."

Still nothing.

"Come on, Link! Are you seriously going to tell me after fending off multiple Fu-Ma ninja with ease you're going to let a few shuriken do you in!?" She nearly shouted with uncharacteristic desperation as she kept pouring more and more into his mouth to the point it was now flowing out of his mouth.

But whether it was her words, the blue liquid, or her unusual concern for the boy, she finally got a reaction as he started coughing from the extra liquid in his lungs, causing her to let out a breath she didn't realize she was holding. After a few more coughs, he gingerly took the bottle himself and took several gulps on his own. It was then Taki thought she heard some kind of hissing, crinkling sound. Like paper being crumpled combined with a snake's hiss. She looked at Link's backside, and her eyes widened (again!) at what she saw.

His wounds were patching themselves up at a very rapid rate! She watched in fascination as it completely healed, almost leaving no mark save for tiny scars that one would have to look up close to see.

After a few more moments of watching Link gulp down...whatever it was he was drinking, she was surprised again as Link suddenly jumped up to his feet, as if fully energized and nothing had happened to him as he let out a satisfied "Ahh" and wiped his mouth and...Did his breath turn blue?

He then looked at the bottle as he spoke. "Thank the goddesses whoever invented this stuff. I KNEW I packed this for a reason," he stated in satisfaction before holding it out to Taki. "Here. It'll heal your wounds. It tastes awful but its magic works wonders. Go ahead," he urged, which Taki took after a little hesitation.

It was still a little over halfway full, she noticed. Apparently, it at least did not take a whole bottle to heal, or at least not for the particular injuries he had. She was naturally cautious when offered a drink she was unfamiliar with. Mainly out of concern that it was poisoned in some way. But after seeing its effects on Link, she pushed that aside and did as told. After two gulps, though, she scrunched her eyes and shook her head at the taste. She let out a breath, and saw it was blue as well.

'Hopefully that's not a permanent side effect,' she thought to herself.

It was then the hissing sound came again, but this time she could feel it happening as well. She watched in silent wonder as her wounds, particularly her abdomen, started healing itself up. It wasn't fully healed, but now only a dried scratch was visible on it with even lighter scratches on her arm and thigh. Her face also felt less scratched and bruised. And to her added surprise, she felt a little more...energetic. As if she felt more ki in her just now. Although not even back at a quarter strength, it still was significantly better than she was.

"Hurry! They must still be around here!"

"Don't let them get away!"

She briefly turned towards the voices behind her before quickly shoving the bottle back to Link, who was a little off guard from the sudden move, and then jumped back on the horse. "Hurry! We need to get as far away as we can!" She urged as she looked back towards the campsite. She could vaguely make out a silhouette on horseback but it was too dark to determine how far away they were. Plus they still had to worry about just _how_ they were going to get out of this without enough light to safely navigate their way through, with the many branches, leaves and bushes blocking most of the moonlight.

She was then surprised when Link jumped on the horse with her—except he jumped _in front_ of her instead of behind her like she expected. "Don't worry, I got this," he exclaimed.

She was rather put off by this, not used to someone else taking charge over her like that. And where the hell did that bottle go!?

Before she could say anything, he reached behind him over his shoulder and...pulled an arrow out as if from nowhere!? "Lotar Oraw!" he exclaimed. Then she watched in fascination as suddenly the tip glowed with a bright light, illuminating the surrounding area.

'That...must be the same arrow from before!' she realized, recognizing the glow from the temple that destroyed the Mōdotakuyō. From her estimation, it looked like they could see about twenty-five to thirty feet around them with this light. 'Impressive. He just solved the problem for us.' But it was not long after activating the arrow that their location was noticed.

"Look! Over there! That light!"

"That must be them! Hurry! They must NOT be allowed to escape!"

Link merely smiled behind him and adjusted his cap before facing forward again. "Alright, here we go! Hiyah!" Link stated, almost gleefully as the horse took off, holding the arrow high and in front of him. The sudden motion forced Taki to grip onto Link to hold steady. She was still used to traveling alone, or at least not on the same horse as someone. And she was still a bit miffed at having him take over the reins like that—figuratively and literally in this case. With no other choice but to steady herself, she reluctantly wrapped her arms around Link's abdomen, hoping Link didn't get any ideas from it.

Shaking that thought off, she watched as Link expertly weaved his way through the trees and bushes without losing any speed. It was almost as if he and the horse were connected—like they both knew what the other was thinking. 'Is he really that good with horses?' she wondered to herself.

She turned behind her and could tell they were not very far away. She then suddenly heard another hissing sound, followed by another before watching a couple objects being tossed behind them. A small smirk adorned her face at what she saw was tossed behind them before she turned forward and closed her eyes hard, bracing herself.

BOOM!

BOOM!

Their horse was a little startled by the sudden explosions from Link's bombs, running slightly wilder and side-to-side a bit before Link calmly settled her down and continued running normally. Behind her, though, she could hear several horses neighing in freight once again, followed by more cursing from the Fu-Ma. Even if they weren't near the blast, it still bought them several precious seconds of time. 'We might just get out of this after all,' she thought to herself.

As she turned to face forward again and readjust her grip, it was then she made an unexpected observation about Link as she held onto him. Despite his average frame, Link had considerably...developed muscles. She gathered he wasn't heavily muscled as some men she had observed every now and then, but he was still rather toned. Even his back felt a little muscled from what she could tell-

'Kami! What the hell am I thinking!?' she mentally berated herself, wondering where that thought came from and why she would think of anything like that to begin with. She was glad it was still night, so no one could see her embarrassed (and possibly blushing) face.

* * *

Link continued to expertly navigate through the woods, deliberately going near tight spots to make it more difficult for their pursuers to follow without enough light. His ears could tell their lead was considerable and still growing, getting harder and harder to hear any Fu-Ma nearby, especially after dropping a couple of Bombs to slow them down more. They had been running for nearly ten minutes now through the dense woods. The only trouble now, though, was that Link had no idea where they were. He had mainly been winging it, not really thinking on what he was going to do next, and just focused on escaping. Fortunately, there was someone else with him that seemed to know.

"There! Veer left. Now, take a sharp right...Here! A little more...Good! Keep going straight until I tell you to stop." Glad she seemed to know where they were, he wordlessly obeyed before eventually hearing a "Stop!" from her a few minutes later.

"Now, put out the light for a minute. Good."

With the Light Arrow deactivated, he looked around a bit. With the more open space, he could now see more from the moonlight. He saw they had arrived at a beaten path about forty to fifty feet wide, right where it turned at a ninety-degree junction. The path to his right traveled a little over a hundred feet before veering off slightly to the left while the path straight ahead seemed to do the same, only with a sharper curve.

"Now, do you still have your bow...wherever it is?" Taki asked, getting his attention again.

"H-Hai...why?" he said slowly, trying to figure out Taki's plan.

"Excellent. Now, how far can you shoot with it? How long does the light last on your arrow after firing? And are you a good shot?" she asked in rapid succession, making Link blink a bit at everything she asked at once.

"Uh...at least a couple hundred feet easy. Maybe up to five seconds after firing or until it hits something. And...I'd say I'm a decent shot," he answered slowly at the end. Actually more like a crack shot, though Link wasn't one to boast. He practiced all those archery games in Hyrule and Termina until he consistently got a perfect score each time. Now it would be rare for him to ever miss his target as long as it was in range.

"Good enough. Now. Fire one of those...'Light Arrows' of yours to our right as far as you can into the base of a tree, and then head straight immediately after you've fired. Aim parallel, not high or too low. Make sure it hits its target far beyond the beaten path. Got it?"

"Uh, right," he replied, trying to keep up with her instructions, but he quickly understood her plan. Fire the arrow so the light flashes at a point far away from the beaten path to lure them that way, hopefully in such a way that they don't see it as a diversion—or at least, not immediately.

He then reached behind him, and with a command, pulled out his bow and notched an arrow...again as if from out of nowhere, making Taki wonder again just how the hell he did that. And she was right behind him when he did that, too!

He aimed for several seconds, making sure he knew where he wanted to fire. Once he was sure of his aim, he activated the Light Arrow and immediately let it loose. They watched as it flew at high speeds upon release, flying nearly a second and a half and well past the junction that turned to the side before impacting just above the base of a tree—over three hundred feet away. Once it made impact, a bright light engulfed the area, briefly illuminating everything around by well over fifty feet before vanishing as fast as it appeared.

"Hiyah!" Link went shortly after firing, pleased with his shot. The horse obeyed as they went straight on the beaten path. This time, they relied on the moonlight instead of a Light Arrow now that they did not have to weave through the trees and could just run straight ahead.

He put his bow away, which vanished as soon as he put it behind him. He then blushed as he shortly felt Taki's arms gingerly wrap around his torso again. She did that relatively frequently when she kept checking behind them and turning back forward, and was glad she was unable to see his face each time. It didn't help that he could feel two very... _ample_ mounds pressed against his back. Or when sitting upright, the back of his head.

It reminded him of how Malon held him in a similar way when they spent their day together before he left for this world. Except for most of the ride, she also liked to rest her head on his back and shoulder. And she not only wrapped her arms around his abdomen, but also held him very tight and frequently rubbed her hands and fingers across it as well, making him blush as red as her hair. And for whatever reason, he heard her let out a moan as she did so. More than once. Or twice...actually, very frequently when he thought about it.

In fact, he had found her actions...felt pretty good actually, finding it strangely enjoyable—almost letting out a moan himself as a result. Almost. But he was too nervous on how to react at that point and so he simply stayed silent and let her do as she pleased...and she seemed very happy when all was said and done before finally giving him a kiss on the cheek, thanking him for a wonderful time. He still wasn't sure why she kissed him, but he didn't complain, simply happy that he made her smile like that.

He shook his head, trying to clear his head and concentrate on the road ahead.

"Something wrong, Link?" Taki asked, who saw him shake his head a bit.

"Uh, n-no. Nothing's wrong," he said nervously, hoping Taki didn't see his blushing.

"Hmm...if you're sure," making him give a sigh of relief. "Alright. At the next sharp turn, do not take it and instead go straight and off the path back into the woods. I know a safe place we can hide for the night."

That was the best news he heard all night as he urged his horse forward, ignoring another blush as Taki held onto him again as they rode into the night.

* * *

( _moments earlier_ )

The four Fu-Ma tailing the boy and the traitor grew frustrated at letting them slip through their fingers like that. That boy in particular was becoming more and more irritable every second. Just as much as Taki, if that was even possible. And just how the hell was he producing those explosives of his!? "Damn it! Can anyone see their light!?" he yelled in frustration.

After the light suddenly vanished, they were now totally traveling blind, trying to search for them quickly while not having their horses run into anything in the dark and suddenly trip or otherwise accidentally knock their riders off and cost them more time.

"Not yet, Geki-sama."

"I cannot see anything either."

"Or I, Geki-sama."

Geki gritted his teeth almost to the point of crushing his own teeth. "Grrr...keep searching! Slowly start to fan out. They have either put it out, covered it, or dimmed it to lose our trail. Signal when you see something!" he ordered.

They slowly did just that, gradually fanning out while still navigating their way through the woods. But it was only a minute later when a familiar flash of light caught their eyes.

"Look! Over there!" one shouted as a small flash of light suddenly illuminated to their right several hundred feet away. The thick foliage prevented them seeing everything, but they saw enough to see a somewhat bright flash before disappearing again.

"I saw it! Grrr, they must have dimmed it again, keeping it active in spurts to try and lose us. Hurry! Continue fanning out towards that area and signal when you see it again! Do not stop until they are found! Understood!?" Geki ordered.

"YOSH!" they shouted as they changed course. Unaware that their targets were heading in another direction, safely away from their pursuers.

* * *

 **A/N: ANNND done. Yeesh. Sorry for the delay. An online class for my MBA took up a lot of my time and work is starting to pick up again as well.**

 **I have another chapter almost done, and I plan on having it posted sometime next week.**

 **After their "misunderstanding" as Link put it, the two escaped from the Fu-Ma once again. But what happens next? After escaping, what's their next move? And after everything that had occurred, what does Taki think of Link now?**

 **Find out next time!**

 **For now, this is Agent Ghost-Writer 000 signing off.**


	13. Chapter 13 - Reflections

**.**

This is a sentence. - Narration. No character speaking or thinking.

"This is a sentence." - Character speaking out loud.

'This is a sentence.' - Character speaking in his/her head.

This _is_ a sentence. - Emphasis placed on the italic word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

This IS a sentence. - Same as with the single italic, just a variation of expressing the emphasis.

 _This is a sentence. -_ All italics means the event is happening in a dream or flashback of which I would give a quick note prior saying a dream or flashback is occurring.

 _This_ is _a sentence_. - During a dream or flashback, emphasis placed in the normal text word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

 **.**

 **A/N: So, just a quick note with Link's Sheikah Scroll, you'll notice he speaks his native tongue when he summons or puts away his items. I just make up words when I do. Like in the la** **st chapter, "Lotar Oraw" would translate as "Light Arrow" and "borta" would tr** **anslate as "bottle". Hope that makes sense. On with the story!**

 **I do not own The Legend of Zelda or Soul Calibur.**

* * *

 **Chapter 13 - Reflections**

Per Taki's directions, they traveled another twenty minutes, but not at high speed as their horse was getting tired, both physically and sleep-wise, and they were not using a Light Arrow to guide them to avoid detection. They eventually stopped at a point of another beaten path were it suddenly dropped down at the edge by about five or six feet, extended about four feet from there, and then another nine or ten foot drop after that before suddenly leveling out again. An incline by the upper-edge allowed the horse to easily walk down these elevations. A decently sized hole was carved just underneath the beaten path, maybe four feet tall and seven feet wide with a depth of maybe three or four feet **(A/N: Think the part where Frodo and company briefly hid from the Nazgul in the first Lord of the Rings movie)**.

"We will stay here for the night. It should provide enough cover to avoid detection," she calmly stated before dismounting, Link doing the same shortly after and guided the horse towards hideaway. However, Taki did not immediately go in; instead, she walked back up towards the beaten path. "I will do a quick look around to ensure we have not been followed. I will be back shortly," she stated before abruptly taking off, almost as if in a hurry before Link had a chance to say anything, much to his confusion.

"What was that about?" he asked his horse, who just snorted and laid down as if shrugging and saying 'I don't know.'

"Yeah, me either," he stated before smiling and laying down by his friend. "You really got us out of a jam back there. Thanks girl," he praised before giving a hug, who rubbed her head against him in kind, making him laugh a bit.

They sat in silence for several minutes as Link patiently waited for Taki to return. He tried to stay awake in that time, but he was exhausted after everything that happened in the past several hours. Potions may heal injuries and recover magic, but that didn't mean they kept someone awake. Soon he was unable to keep his eyes open anymore and quickly drifted off to sleep.

* * *

Taki had been gone for maybe five minutes as she did a quick look around. Or to be more precise, answering nature's call. After spending the last ten hours of traveling towards a temple, engaged in battle, on the run, and getting saddle-sore, she felt she was _this_ close to embarrassing herself in front of Link. Ninja were trained to hold such bodily functions for long periods of time, but one could only do so for so long.

She checked around one more time before heading back. She was just about to enter when she blinked at the sight of Link and the horse sleeping peacefully together. Link was laying on her like a pillow, and the horse didn't seem to mind, which laid with her back end in the hollow opening and the front partially sticking out. It was still rather amazing at how well and how fast they bonded. Did he work as a rancher at one point?

Shaking her head, she moved to the other side of the small cave and removed her weaponry, placing them by her side. However, she didn't go to sleep yet, instead reflecting on everything that happened now that she finally had a chance to rest. It still marveled her at how fast everything occurred in just the past several hours. From engaging in battle against her possessed master and foster father, to escaping from the Fu-Ma that had cornered her in the temple, engaging in battle again shortly after that, only to find herself discovered by the Fu-Ma a second time, and then _escape_ from them a second time.

Even on a normal day on the run, she didn't have this much excitement—if you could call fighting a possessed clan leader, fighting a young but surprisingly skilled gaijin, and escaping from the clan out to kill you twice "excitement". But throughout all of that "excitement", each part had one thing in common.

Or rather, one _person_ in common as she looked at the boy in question.

Upon first meeting him, he had destroyed the oni that had possessed her master, then helped them escape the temple right afterwards with that strange magic of his. And not only that, he helped them escape from the Fu-Ma in such a way as to totally lose them. Despite this, she thought little of him at the time, seeing him as merely an annoyance and a hindrance. After escaping from the temple, she had originally planned to simply take the shards away from him in the middle of the night once she had sufficiently recovered her strength and then distract the Fu-Ma away from him while she continued to live in hiding. That way, she could work alone like she was accustomed to, as well as feel more at ease that the Fu-Ma were not after a child of all people.

That was about as far as her caring about him went, up to that point.

Then after the brief...incident with their swords, they later had a conversation where she actually threatened to kill him to take said shards after he unintentionally angered her about Chie, and they ended up fighting as a result with both of them getting knocked out from that...energy blast from their swords connecting, something she still needed to look into. After waking up, she saw his ears and assumed he was a demon in disguise and prepared to kill him, only to hesitate after what he said that a sensei of hers always told her.

That same hesitation, though, likely saved her life as he then not only willingly took multiple shuriken to the back for her, but once again played a crucial role in their second escape from the Fu-Ma. He could have simply just let her die and saved his own skin—and on more than one occasion.

But no. Both times, he willingly put his life on the line for her despite not owing her anything. No demon would go so far as to do that.

And there was something he said that stuck out as well...

* * *

 _(Flashback)_

 _"Now then," Geki continued, getting their attention again. "You, gaijin, are coming with us. Not only do you have something we are after, but we want to know what you know about those shards. Obey, and you will live. Resist," he stated before he and his comrades got into a fighting stance, "and you will perish."_

 _"...And...Taki?" Link slowly asked._

 _"She dies either way," Geki replied, which made Link narrow his eyes at that._

 _"What does that matter to you, gaijin? She had a sword to your throat before I attacked her from behind. Why would you care what happened to her?" Doki asked._

 _"Is that so?" Geki commented._

 _"Indeed. If it wasn't for the fact I was ordered to keep you alive, I would have waited until AFTER she killed you before striking her. You should be grateful, kid."_

 _"I care (cough) about Taki...because she is my friend!"_

* * *

(End Flashback)

'Why would he say I was his friend? Especially after I tried to...kill him earlier?'

Everything could be explained logically, she was taught. Like a scientist or mathematician methodically breaking down a problem step-by-step, piece-by-piece. There was a fixed solution and explanation to everything, and all it takes is careful use of observation, resources and time to figure it out.

This, however, defied all logic she knew of. The fact that he so easily fell asleep also indicated his willingness to trust her despite everything that had occurred, whereas her paranoia of being killed in her sleep, especially with someone she just met and had earlier just tried to kill her, would keep her awake all night—or just flat out took off the first chance she got (after taking the shards, of course). The more she thought about it, the more it baffled her mind, and it confused her to no end.

She shook her head at that, only for her thoughts to go back to what happened in that temple only a few hours ago, a slightly saddened look adorning her face. Toki may had been corrupted, but he didn't start out that way. He was strict but not uncaring by any means. For over fifteen years, he had raised her and taught her what he knew and what the Fu-Ma Clan stood for—to destroy evil and protect others from the demons and other evils in the world, even if at the expense of one's own life.

It was those same teachings, both the combat training and the philosophies, that helped her make her decisions to protect her friend Chie and Chie's father—and by extension, Li Long—rather than blindly obey her master's orders like her fellow Fu Ma. Even if it meant going on the run for the rest of her life.

Somehow, he slowly became corrupt under the influence of the Mekki-Maru which later caused him to change his methods and everything the clan stood for, eventually resulting in civil war when, under Taki's reasoning, multiple Fu-Ma ninja finally began to see what she had seen in Toki seven years earlier. While, she did not start the conflict as Geki implied, she did help spread it and convince more Fu-Ma to defect.

Then it finally came to ahead at the Hoko Temple where she finally cornered him, only to see him release the Mōdotakuyō demon she had previously sealed there and absorb it in hopes to kill her and possess Mekki-Maru. She succeeded in defeating their combined form and exorcising the demon from him, returning him to normal. But in the process…

She let out a large sigh at that as she looked down to the side. She wondered if she could live with herself after committing such a deed. To know she had killed someone close to her. It pained her knowing she was the one to have killed him, to have killed the man she would come to see as her father. She had killed people before, but only when hired by a daimyo to do so, and those she killed were themselves killers.

But...this was different.

This wasn't some criminal or demon she killed, but one whom she saw as family. It was a much different feeling, and one she never wanted to feel again. It was far too painful, even more than she could have imagined. She found herself wondering if there was more she could have done...to save him without killing him. She replayed that event in her mind over and over...of her thrusting her blade in Toki's sternum that led to his death. Could she have aimed lower...or to the side? Or in the shoulder, where his odds of surviving would have been higher? Or-

She shook her head. 'No...There was nothing more that could have been done...' she thought sadly. 'You had a duty to perform. To free Toki from himself...to free him of his corruption. It was the only way...The oni would not have left his body had it not have been done as it had...and his soul would still have been corrupted.'

'And yet he still would have been alive,' another part of her thought.

She angrily shook her head at that and let out a sigh, now finding herself wondering what to do next. She actually had successfully accomplished her mission in finding Toki...even if the ending was not what she had hoped. So then...what was her next objective? What was her plan after that?

Currently, the Fu-Ma weren't far away, and though she lost them for the time being, she knew that wasn't going to last forever. She also needed to resupply, as she had to leave much of what she had behind when they escaped from the Fu-Ma at the temple. Then after resupplying...then what? Where did she go next?

She tried to come up with something, but lightly grunted in frustration. She still couldn't shake what happened with her master, the guilt rising up in her again. At this point, she just wanted to sleep. All this thinking was just depressing her and messing with her head, and sleep would be a welcome scenario. But instinctively her concern of being killed in her sleep popped in her mind, a habit that often prevented her from getting as much sleep as she would have liked, keeping her awake for hours each night. In fact, she also regularly slept with one eye open, even if she felt rather secure where she was sleeping with virtually no danger of being found by enemies in the night. It was yet another habit she never let go of. Granted, it was a habit which had saved her on more than one occasion in the past. Still...it would be nice to finally get a good night's rest for once.

"(sigh) It's as if I'm cursed," she said bitterly to herself...and with a hint of sadness as she looked at Mekki-Maru, the bane of her existence. The very sight of it made her blood boil. "Everything that has led up to this point of my life is because of _this_! All this started with this _cursed_ weapon!" she said a little louder than intended.

Twice in the past she had gone after Soul Edge, the source of its evil power, to destroy it. Twice she failed. The thought of it just filled her with despair, that she was a failure. That all of her efforts for the past seven years were for nothing...that everything she had fought for and risked her life for was all in vain!

"Seven years...Seven years I've been on the run. Seven years I've been looking over my shoulder, unable to rest peacefully," her voice gradually getting higher as she spoke. She was frustrated, angry, and tired—both physically and mentally. Tired of all the running. Of all the fighting. Of being hunted. Of Soul Edge and its never-ending presence, it seemed, as she hatefully looked at Mekki-Maru. "All because of this...All because of this cursed piece of kuso of a weapon that has brought me nothing but misery and suffering!"

She angrily shut her eyes, trying to keep calm. But in the end, it was just too much for her as she had finally reached her breaking point, and in a moment of anger she quickly raised the blade in question and prepared to throw it away as hard as she could-

Suddenly she stopped, when her eyes caught the sight of Link, who was looking at her with an alert but worried expression and was now sitting up from his position, his horse now alert and looking at her as well. "Taki?"

She stayed as she was, blinking her eyes and breathing heavily as she looked back. Given her position, to an outside person it would have looked like she was about to attack him. Link looked at her sword for a moment before looking back at her. "Are you alright?"

Realizing the situation, she closed her eyes and slowly lowered her blade again, letting out a breath she wasn't aware she had been holding. "Forgive me. It has been a...very rough night to say the least," she said slowly, feeling very disappointed and angry at herself for letting her emotions get the best of her like that...and not just with the Mekki-Maru just now but as well as during her prior conversation with the boy...before they later fought. She always prided herself on controlling her emotions, and yet lately she was finding herself suddenly losing control of herself.

'And ultimately that was what allowed the Fu-Ma to track them down and then injure Link to the point of near death,' she thought angrily to herself.

Seeing her put done her sword, Link mentally gave a sigh of relief, glad she wasn't going to attack before sitting back down. "It-it's alright," he said slowly. She looked very shaken up, something that was very unlike her. "Are you-Are you feeling alright?"

All of a sudden she quickly turned to the side, an angry expression forming on her face. "I'm fine," she retorted, making Link flinch a little at that. Normally she would have made another comment at that question, but this time she felt guilty upon seeing him flinch at her tone. "(sigh) My apologies...These past years of fighting, and running, have been taking its toll as of late," she said slowly, and really struggled to admit such a fact, especially to another.

Link nodded at that. "I can only imagine how difficult it must be to have lived on the run like that for so long."

"...How long were you listening?" she slowly asked.

"Long enough to hear you have been looking over your shoulder for seven years...because of that," he responded while gesturing towards her sword.

She looked and gave another brief glare at the sword in question before softening as she looked away. "I see..."

"Do you...want to talk about it?" Link slowly asked.

She stayed still, not sure how to reply as she continued looking to the side. Normally she would tell that person to mind their own business or a similar comment, much like how she did before. But for some reason, seeing his genuinely concerned look prevented such a retort and instead she kept silent.

"I can't imagine how painful it must have been...what happened at the temple, I mean," Link continued, "but I do know what it's like to lose someone close to you."

That got Taki to look up and slowly turn to Link. She stayed silent a bit, not sure how to respond to that. Her instinct to brush him off came to mind, but she gradually pressed it down this time. "How so?" she asked slowly.

Taking that as positive step, Link continued. "I never knew my parents either. I was raised in a forest populated only by children under the care of a guardian who was probably the closest I had to a father. He was known as the 'Great Deku Tree.'"

Taki tilted her head at that, taking in what he had said. The part of the guardian being a 'tree' sounded off to her, but she did recall how he said he was from another world and also recalled the magic he possessed and so decided to give him the benefit of the doubt on that. But then she noticed how Link referred to him in past tense. "Wait, was?"

Link gave another sad nod. "Yeah...He was a large tree literally hundreds of feet wide and hundreds of feet tall but possessed powerful magic. A face was carved on the tree that looked like an old wise man and he could talk. I know it's strange, but it's the truth. One day I was summoned to see him, and he told me he had been cursed by a powerful wizard who wanted something from him and he refused to give it to him, and so the wizard cursed him, slowly killing him as the days went by.

"He asked me to enter inside him, who was a lot more hollow on the inside than I thought," Link added with a small chuckle, "and break the curse. When I entered inside, he was plagued with many monsters inside him. Giant spiders, man-eating plants, and various other creatures. Finally I found the source, a giant insect-like creature poisoning him from the inside. I managed to destroy it and free him of the curse...only for it to have all been in vain," he said sadly, barely above a whisper.

Taki listened how he poured his heart out to her, the last part made he widen her eyes at the implication of it. "You were...too late?"

"Hai...The curse had been with him too long. It was...very difficult knowing I couldn't save him. He gave some parting words, telling me not to despair before...turning to stone. (sigh) At the very least, I guess I was able to...ease his suffering before he died," a saddened look on his face as he huddled himself up, bringing his knees to his face as he looked down.

Taki stayed silent. It definitely sounded like a strange story like he said—a large "magical tree guardian" with a carved face that died by turning to stone—but she observed his tone and body language and could find no deception whatsoever in what he said or how he said it.

'And so, he _must_ be telling the truth,' she said to herself as she allowed herself to process what he had shared.

While it wasn't quite the same as how she lost her master, there were definitely similarities between the two. And to have lost someone so young must have been particularly devastating to him.

'And...even more so when he tried to save him and it _still_ wasn't enough, even though he succeeded in destroying the cause of his pain...'

That last part gave her pause. Was her master secretly in pain when he was possessed? Or the whole time he was corrupted by Mekki-Maru's influence? She could never know for sure, but the thought of having at least ended her master's pain...made her feel a little better, even if just a slight.

They stayed silent, quietly reflecting on what Link had shared. While Link was reflecting on what he experienced, Taki was reflecting on how she seemed to have more in common with the boy than she would have otherwise expected. After a couple minutes of silence, Taki finally spoke up.

"My apologies, Link."

"(sigh) It is alright. It is in the past now,"

"No...for misjudging you," she stated before standing upright just outside the hideaway.

That got Link's attention as he looked up at her in a mix of surprise and curiosity. She took a deep breath before continuing to speak, "I have been...disrespectful towards you since our meeting, despite all the...assistance you had given me earlier. I later let my emotions get the better of me and...nearly killed you in my anger, and then nearly got _us_ killed not long after that." 'Kami, this is harder than I thought,' she said to herself, but she continued on.

"It was very...unprofessional of me to conduct myself as such, especially with...everything you had done to help me. And so...I apologize for all the trouble I have caused you, and for anything I may have said or done that offended you. Including...nearly getting you killed...and nearly killing you," she hesitantly added while giving a reluctant but deep bow.

'There, I said it,' she thought to herself.

Apologizing was something she almost never had to do in her life. Even now, the concept was almost foreign to her, as she often saw it as a sign of weakness and already was feeling uncomfortable and somewhat embarrassed by it. Still, even she knew when she was in the wrong (if nearly killing someone who did nothing but help you wasn't evidence enough).

Link seemed to get this feeling as well, seeing the normally plain-spoken Taki struggle a bit as she tried to per her words together. He also thought she was likely still trying to uphold her strong-image persona while still trying to make an apology. Mido often did the same thing when Saria forced him to apologize for hurting him, and even then, Link still got the impression he didn't really mean it. But with Taki, even though she was still trying to maintain her reputation as being strong and tough at all times, Link felt she was being sincere in her apology and truly felt regretful at how she had treated him—and how she nearly killed him.

And ultimately, that was enough for him to stand and gave a light bow in return. "Apology accepted," he said cheerfully, a bright smile on his face as he stood upright again and extended a hand towards her to shake. Taki, though mentally relieved of not having to bow in apologies anymore, blinked and looked at his outstretched hand in confusion, surprised at how accepting he was of it considering everything that had transpired between them.

"Just like that?" she asked.

"Mm, hm. Just like that," Link replied with a nod, arm still outstretched and the smile still on his face.

Taki looked at his hand for a moment, but was still confused at his actions. He acted as if nothing had happened between them...

"Why?"

That caught Link off guard. "Why? Why, what?"

"Why so willing to forgive?" she asked as she looked back at him. "I do not understand. After everything I said to you...how I constantly snapped at you, berated you, scolded you. I even almost _killed_ you by my own hand...even though you saved my life earlier...and you're _still_ willing to look past all that...even going so far as to take the hit for me when I was being attacked from behind," she stated, her tone getting softer as she spoke. "...So, why? Why so willing to ignore _all_ of that and not hold any of that against me?"

Link looked at her for a bit, seeing the confusion on her face before simply giving a shrug. "Because I just don't hold grudges. I knew you weren't really upset with me, just upset with what had happened at the temple earlier...which, I know couldn't have been an easy experience..." he added a bit quieter, knowing it was a sensitive topic, "...and since Hachibei-sensei knew you were trustworthy, I thought after meeting you we could be friends. And that's what friends do. They forgive each other."

Taki suddenly found herself once again surprised and at a loss of words, her mouth slightly open and eyes widened once again at his response. She was silent for over a minute before she could find herself to speak. "And...is that why you called me a friend earlier? You considered me a 'friend' then? Even though I had just tried to kill you?"

"Eh, hehe...Well...I won't lie, I was pretty nervous that you were going to..." Link nervously chuckled, rubbing the back of his head at that. Taki's eyes softened at that as a (small) regretful frown adorned her face at that. "...but whether you were, or weren't, you didn't. And to me, that's all that matters," he proudly declared, not a hint of anger or resentment to her in any way as he offered to shake his hand again.

Silence and disbelief reigned Taki once again as she took it all in. Chie was the only friend she ever had in life, and in her mind, the only friend she would ever need. And when she thought Chie had died, she thought it was the only friend she would ever _have_ , becoming cold and distant to everyone around her since then. Now she learned she was in fact very much alive, and this boy from another land, who risked his life NOT just by destroying the oni that had possessed her foster father, NOT just by helping her escape from the Fu-Ma, but also by willing to befriend her—even though he risked serious injury in doing so...including by her own hand, something she truly regretted doing.

Now she started seeing the boy in a new light. Gone were any thoughts of annoyance, doubt, or disinterest in the boy and instead were replaced with acceptance, honor, and respect. And dare she say, a bit of curiosity in learning more about him and where he came from.

She stayed silent for another minute before finally a small sigh escaped her lips as she shook her head in a mix of disbelief and amusement. "I must say. I do not give out compliments often, but if there is one thing I can say about you," she started, a small smile adorning on her face, "it's that you've got a lot of guts, kid," she finished before shaking his hand.

Link initially had surprise on his face, then had a slight embarrassed look at the compliment she gave him, but nonetheless smiled at her. "So...friends?" he asked a bit bashfully.

And in a move unlike Taki, a very warm smile, the biggest smile she made in years (even if still very small), adorned her face before nodding. "Friends."

That made Link give a beaming smile as they shook hands. To an outsider, he had done the impossible.

He had befriended the renowned Taki no Fuma.

They stayed silent as they let go, both still having a smile on their faces, and Link couldn't help but notice how pretty she looked. Her smile, though—as small as it was—was something to behold. He didn't know what it was, but whenever a girl (or woman in this case) smiled like that, it just made him feel good about it, especially when he was the one who helped them smile, feeling like he helped make a difference in their lives.

As if to add to it, a glow from the moonlight that was able to peek through the trees fell on her, giving her an even prettier look. Almost...angelic, Link thought as that weird feeling in his chest came back to him as he continued looking at her, still not sure where that feeling came from or why he was feeling it. Was it normal to feel that way? Did Taki feel something similar? Or-

A sudden snort from behind caught their attention as they looked behind Link to see the horse getting back into a sleeping position, almost as if in annoyance at having been woken up for nothing. "Eh, hehe. Sorry to wake you, girl. We're good now. (yawn) You can go back to sleep," Link stated tiredly while giving the horse a couple pats before turning back to Taki.

As he spoke to his horse, Taki strangely felt it...rather amusing when he yawned like that, surprising herself in feeling that way, her mouth twitching upward _just_ a little bit more for a brief moment but was gone by the time he turned around. "Perhaps we should call it a night as well. We can continue in the morning," she said evenly, her normal stoic persona reappearing but her eyes much softer than before.

Despite this, Link was glad as he knew she was feeling better. Plus, Link felt that he was able to see the person behind the ninja persona, the real Taki underneath her hard exterior visage she was known for, saving that moonlight image of her in his head to memory. "Mm, hm. Sounds good," he replied before laying back down as he was, laying against his horse who by now had fallen back asleep. "Goodnight, Taki."

It had been a long time since anyone said that to her. And surprisingly...it felt rather good when he said that, making her hesitate slightly before she responded. "...Goodnight. And Link?" she added, getting his attention. "Thank you. For...everything," she said slowly, feeling almost...embarrassed? She wasn't sure what that feeling was, but it wasn't a bad one.

Link gave a light smile before nodding. "You're welcome," he replied before laying back down.

A strange, pleasant feeling rushed inside Taki when he said, something she hadn't felt before. In fact, a similar feeling occurred when Taki saw the look Link was giving her just after they shook hands. It was not unpleasant by any means, though she nonetheless found it hard to read him as he looked at her. And strangely, she found it to be almost...appreciative(?) and couldn't help but look back. Or help but notice the glow of the moonlight on him. Combined with the look he was giving her, it seemed to give him an almost ethereal look-

She shook her at that. Just where did that come from? And why did she feel that way, brief as it was? Deciding to ignore it, she rested against the wall and tried to get as much sleep as she could now that they could properly take a rest. But before totally settling in, she couldn't resist looking at Link one more time before finally closing her eyes to sleep.

* * *

 **A/N: Annnnd done.**

 **Didn't quite get this chapter out when I wanted, but not nearly as delayed as before. I was originally going to keep the chapter going, but after seeing how long it was getting, I decided this would be a good stopping point.**

 **I also wanted to show a more human side of Taki with all the stress she likely has endured for seven years on the run. Combined with being forced to kill her master, I think that's enough to make anyone break down regardless of being trained as a ninja.**

 **Also not sure if anyone noticed, but I have a tendency to add a few lines from movies or TV shows I watched into the dialogue. As an example, the part about Taki where "those she killed were themselves killers" was a line uttered by 007 about himself in The Man With The Golden Gun when he's having dinner with the titular villain. Can you spot any other lines you may have recognized from movies or TV shows? Feel free to leave a review when you do :)**

 **So after finally clearing up their "misunderstanding" as Link called it, the two are now officially friends. But what will they do now? And how will their friendship be affected by it?**

 **Find out next time!**

 **For now, this is Agent Ghost-Writer 000 signing off.**


	14. Chapter 14 - Decisions

**A/N: Hey, everyone! Glad you're enjoying the story so far. About one more chapter here and then the next one will transition to Europe. As to the manner and path they get there...well, I'll keep that under wraps for now :)**

 **Thanks so much for the reviews! Luv ya!**

 **(Updated 8/30/19) - I added a little more at the end as I thought it would make the transition to Europe better in the next chapter.**

 **.**

This is a sentence. - Narration. No character speaking or thinking.

"This is a sentence." - Character speaking out loud.

'This is a sentence.' - Character speaking in his/her head.

This _is_ a sentence. - Emphasis placed on the italic word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

This IS a sentence. - Same as with the single italic, just a variation of expressing the emphasis.

 _This is a sentence. -_ All italics means the event is happening in a dream or flashback of which I would give a quick note prior saying a dream or flashback is occurring.

 _This_ is _a sentence_. - During a dream or flashback, emphasis placed in the normal text word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

 **.**

 **I do not own The Legend of Zelda or Soul Calibur.**

* * *

 **Chapter 14 - Decisions**

"Link...Link, wake up."

Link felt himself being lightly shaken as he slowly woke up, blinking at whomever was shaking him before recognizing the familiar face of Taki. "We need to start moving soon."

He yawned at that before frowning, as it wasn't very light out. "...Can't we sleep a little more? It's not even sun rise yet," he tiredly asked.

"If we want to stay ahead of our pursuers, we'll need to get moving soon," she calmly urged. "However, we can wash up in the hot spring first. We can discuss our next move from there."

"(yawn) Alright...Wait, hot spring? Where-"

Then to Link's surprise, Taki unwound a rope or string of some kind he hadn't seen earlier and pulled back a small part of the wall like a curtain. Behind it was a narrow opening, just big enough for a person to squeeze through sideways without too much difficulty. However, a certain feeling washed over Link as he gave a nervous look to Taki.

"Umm...is it alright if I...uh...take care of something real quick?" he nervously asked. Given his posture, she had a pretty good idea what he was referring to.

"Very well. Over there and then reapply the curtain before entering. I will be inside on the opposite side, but hurry up. I do not want to take more time than is needed. And DO NOT...under ANY circumstances...move to the other side of the hot spring. _Understand?_ " she said just inches from his face very threateningly, which made him nod very quickly before she turned around and entered the tunnel to the hot spring.

* * *

After Taki directed to where he could...do his business, he went inside, which was about a twenty foot passage from the entrance and had a bit of an incline downward. Taki was nowhere to be seen but figured she was behind the rock on the other side like she said. However he couldn't help but marvel at the site, letting out a "Wow" in the process as he looked around.

It descended about six to eight feet from the entrance and looked to be about thirty feet wide and nearly seventy feet deep from the entrance. A rather tall rock divided the hot spring into roughly two halves, though one could easily go around it to the other side at the edges, each side with sufficient space to relax in. All in all, it was a very pretty site to see, something made possible with a pair of lanterns that were already there that she lit up.

He looked by his side and saw a towel on a nearby rock. 'She thinks of everything, doesn't she?'

He took the towel and then placed it and his weaponry near the edge of the hot spring before removing his clothing and slowly entering the hot spring. He had to admit, it was very relaxing, and it was nice to be able to wash up. He felt a little dirty and sweaty with everything that happened last night...hopefully Taki wasn't offended in any way if he smelled, he thought.

"So how did you find this place?"

"A stroke of luck," came the reply from Taki on the other side of the divider. "I've traveled all over these lands and often look for safe places to hide and rest from the Fu-Ma. I initially found the opening at the front but not the hot spring. It was only after a second time I stopped at this place I noticed condensation on the rocky walls and then noticed the inside was deeper than it looked. I manually dug a small tunnel to investigate and eventually found the spring. I then got a fabric to cover the entrance and arranged to have it painted and coated to look like the rocky walls to hide it, so that even if someone else found the opening up front, it would minimize the risk of someone finding the hot spring," she explained as she washed her hair.

Taki didn't have many passions, but one thing she secretly enjoyed was taking a good bath. She often did not get to do so regularly, being on the run and all, and so she came to appreciate it every chance she got.

Link briefly submerged himself in full before responding, feeling more awake now. "(Ahh.) Well, I'm glad. It's very relaxing...and I appreciate you sharing it with me. I promise not to tell anyone."

"Good," she nodded even though he couldn't see it. "I would normally not share this with anyone, but in this case I am willing to make an exception."

Of course in Link's mind, that meant because he was her friend, he thought with a smile. They remained in silence for a few minutes, washing up and relaxing a bit before Link spoke up. "So, Taki-chan. Um..." he started but then hesitated.

"...Yes? What is it?" she asked when he wasn't continuing. Although she did not miss the suffix he added at the end of her name and raised an unseen eyebrow at it.

"How are you feeling?...After last night, that is?" he said somewhat nervously.

"...I am fine. Better than I was, actually."

Actually, she felt a lot better, feeling a little more...rested than before. Both physically and mentally. She couldn't have gotten more than maybe four hours of sleep, but she actually slept with both eyes closed this time. She wasn't sure why, but for some reason she felt safe enough to be willing to risk truly falling asleep this time.

And honestly, it was probably the most sleep she had in months. Maybe a year, now that she thought about it.

But there was one other reason why she felt more rested, and it wasn't from having gotten more sleep (even if it did indeed help). No, it was because of what she learned last night that she felt more at ease.

Chie was alive.

The thought alone was enough to let a small smile on her face, as she reflected on that. Now that she was sure Link was telling the truth, it felt as if a great burden had been lifted from her shoulders. That she could breathe a little easier knowing she was alive and well and had been for the past seven years, instead of wondering 'what-if' she had been alive or, 'why did she have to die'. Now such thoughts have disappeared and instead have been replaced with wondering what she had been up to the past seven years and if somehow, someway, she could one day reunite with her again.

"That's good. I'm glad you're feeling better," Link said, getting her attention again.

"...Arigato," she said with a little hesitation, not used to someone checking up on her. For some reason, she actually felt a little better just by him asking. Why was that?

"So...what are we doing next exactly?" he asked hesitantly.

Mentally shrugging that last thought off, she thought it over a bit before replying. "Hmm...Well, to start I need to resupply after last night. After the...incident at the temple, I had to leave my travel bag behind when escaping from the Fu-Ma," she replied as she started putting her hair back in its usual ponytail.

Link cringed slightly at that, as that meant he had forced her to leave it behind as they escaped. "Ehh...gomen. If I had known you had one I would have grabbed it before transporting us to the entrance," he apologized as he rubbed the back of his head.

"It could not be helped. With the Fu-Ma surrounding us in the temple, there was no time to gather them. However, I always prepare for such an occasion and hide backup supplies in strategic locations across the country for when I need them," she replied calmly. "Plus, I am just as guilty in forcing you to leave your cloak behind."

Link just gave a smile at that. "True, but it was nothing major. Just a cloak. Where's the nearest place to resupply, then?"

"The closest would be in Osaka. I have a considerable amount of supplies I keep there, as well as some extra funds."

"Really? Osaka?"

"Hai...why?" she asked slowly, surprised by his sudden excitement.

"That's where I'm going!" he suddenly exclaimed, making Taki raise an eyebrow at that.

"Oh?"

"Yeah! That's where Hachibei-sensei said I should go to find a ship to Europe. I was on my way there when I was walking by that temple where I met you."

"Is that so? Interesting..."

"Yep! Funny how things work, huh?" he added with a little chuckle before submerging himself again.

"Indeed..." she commented, but by now a new idea popped into her head, one she would have never considered had the situation been different. And the more she thought about it...the more the idea made sense to her.

She then realized how much time they had been underground and quickly started drying once she got out. "We should get moving. The Fu-Ma may be nearby and our horse is still outside. Get dressed so we can get out of here."

Link had just re-emerged from another dip but heard her loud and clear. "Right. Now where did I put my clothes?" he asked as he looked around. "Ah! There."

Taki had heard him as he spoke, and by then was turned away and had been fully clothed other than her armor and gear, but as she adjusted her hair for a few seconds, she suddenly froze when she turned her head towards Link's direction. It appeared Link had set his clothes near the rock divider rather than near the entrance...and she had a clear view of Link's backside as he was changing (and thankfully he had his bottoms on when she saw him). He appeared unaware as he casually put his boots on. As he did, he turned slightly towards her but kept looking down and not in her direction, in the process allowing her to see a part of his bare chest.

She was always trained to observe as much detail as she could and in a short amount of time, as sometimes that was all the time one had. And in that time, she couldn't help but notice the slightly developed muscles on his otherwise average frame as well as how he looked without his cap. His hair looked thick though not necessarily long and was a very rich golden blonde. She also partially saw the muscles on his abdomen, which confirmed her suspicions of being a bit muscular there but not heavily by any means.

She also saw several scars on his body, including a couple particularly large ones. One was on his side, and another was in his midsection. The former looked to be caused by a simultaneous burn and a cut. A fire-sword of some kind? The latter looked to have been from a stab wound...but by an extremely large blade. How could he have survived something like that?

All this she observed in a matter of barely ten seconds before she realized she had been staring and hastily turned away, finishing getting her armor and gear on as quickly as she could. Now she REALLY felt embarrassed. She had threatened Link if he did anything to try and see her undressed, only to find herself guilty of doing just that, even if unintentionally. She was glad he didn't notice, as that would have been a most uncomfortable situation to explain.

After finishing getting dressed, she headed back outside (taking the long way around), and was a little surprised to not see Link at the entrance already, expecting him to be ready before her since he had no armor. She turned around and saw him coming up with both lanterns in hand. "Why don't we take these? They can be useful," he explained.

"Perhaps, except for one thing...How would you suggest we carry them with us? We don't exactly have something to carry them with, and-"

"Just leave that to me," he stated before uttering something in a language she didn't recognize, and then when he moved as if to place them behind them...they suddenly vanished!

She blinked in surprise at that before remembering he had done something similar with his other weaponry. She felt somewhat embarrassed she had forgotten about that, but now it begged the question. "Alright, just how did you do that? I saw you do that several times, now, but just how are you able to do that? What magic was that?"

"Well..." Link was about to reply, before a rather mischievous look appeared on his face and shrugged. "Mm, I'll tell you later," he said before nonchalantly heading outside towards their horse.

"What...Hey!" she shouted (or at least for her) before catching up to him. "What was that all about?"

"Nothing. Why?" he asked innocently before jumping on their horse. "Come on. You said we needed to get moving, right? Let's get going then!" he said rather cheerfully...too cheerfully for her tastes. And she couldn't help but notice a much too innocent smile on his face. Did he-?

Oh no, he didn't. Did he seriously just pull a fast one on Taki?

Yes. Yes he did.

An annoyed look adorned on her face at having successfully been lured into curiosity only to deliberately be left in the dark like that. She had to admit, though, it was actually pretty well played. She was fully aware of the importance of battles not fought with blades or fists and instead with words and wits, especially dealing with shady or otherwise untrustworthy...associates she'd put it. Although in this case, it was but a kid with a surprisingly mischievous side he had previously kept hidden. She'll definitely have to keep an eye on him after that.

Still a bit annoyed, she grunted in frustration as she reapplied the "rock" curtain before joining Link on their horse, only she jumped in _front_ of Link this time, not taking that last trick lying down. "Fine. But, _I'm_ driving this time. Hey! What-AH!"

However, the horse had other ideas as all of a sudden it started acting wildly, fighting with her as she struggled to regain control. They were going side to side very rapidly, spinning a little as they did. "Ugh! What is wrong with you?" Taki somewhat angrily addressed their horse.

"Eh...I think she wants me to ride in front," Link said from behind her. The horse continued fighting with Taki, who was not letting up in trying to control her with the reins. It was almost to the point they were starting to buck a bit. "Umm...maybe I should ride in front. I think she'll feel better if I do."

"I can handle this!" she retorted, but as soon as she said that, the horse started acting even more aggressively. She had worked with horses pretty well for almost all her life and never had any problems that she couldn't handle, but here she found herself struggling considerably to maintain control.

Seeing she wasn't getting far, Link hopped off, intending to walk up to her front to help calm her down. But as soon as he hopped off, the horse suddenly started bucking wildly. Taki suddenly found herself in something Link had seen in his travels as she tried to hold on. What did Talon call it? A "ro-day-oh"? He wasn't sure, but it was from a type of outdoor show he once saw that was held out in the country.

He watched as Taki struggled to hold on to the saddle, only for an arm to get loose and fly into the air behind her, further reminding him of a "cowboy"—or "cowgirl" in this case, as he heard the term back home. And for some reason, he found it very amusing to see the usually calm and collected Taki bouncing around like that. So much so, he found himself struggling to contain his laughter at seeing his friend like that.

Finally, after nearly fifteen seconds of wild riding in a sort of impromptu "ro-day-oh," she was finally forced off, landing somewhat hard on the ground—with Link offhandedly noting she would have "won" as she hung on with just one arm for at least eight seconds, if he remembered the rules correctly.

The horse, once she realized no longer had a rider on her, calmly stopped and walked to the side near Link. Taki shook her head from falling off and looked up, even more annoyed as her eyes met the horse, who appeared to be giving her a smug look. She then turned to Link, who was struggling not to laugh as she saw him covering his mouth with his hands. Though as soon as she looked in his direction, he couldn't take it anymore and started laughing hysterically, clutching his sides as he did.

"BWAA HA-HA-HA-HA-HA! THAT WAS SO HILARIOUS!" he blurted out as he laughed and tried to catch his breath. "Oh man (hee hee). Too bad you weren't in one of those country shows back home! I bet you would have won first place easy!" he added before laughing again. After eventually calming down, he looked up to see a very unamused Taki suddenly standing right in front of him, making him step back in surprise at that. 'How did she get there so fast!?'

"Oh that was _funny,_ was it?" she asked very threateningly as she cracked a set of knuckles, a worried look suddenly appearing on Link's face.

"Eh, hehe...just a little," Link squeaked out very nervously, though still rather amused at what happened earlier. All that did was get her to crack her other set of knuckles.

"Let's see how funny _this_ is when I'm through with you-What the!?"

As she was getting ready to make good on her threat, she was suddenly forced to step back several steps as the horse suddenly moved in between them and continued pushing her back. "Why you...Stay out of this!" she ordered, which just caused the horse to whinny back as if saying, "Make me."

Link couldn't help but be greatly amused again at seeing the horse come to his aid, trying not to break out laughing again as he watched Taki vainlessly try to get the horse to move aside. He had to admit, seeing her riled up like that was most entertaining. He might have to do it more often! But as amusing as it was, he decided to mercifully end her embarrassment.

"Uh...Maybe we should just get moving. The Fu-Ma are still looking for us, so we should probably get going."

Taki turned her glare towards Link, who now had a nervous smile on his face although was still trying to contain his laughter. She narrowed her eyes a little more at his taking pleasure in all this before finally taking a deep breath and slowly nodding. "Fine," she said with great annoyance.

But she couldn't help adding one more snide remark as she looked at the horse one more time. "I won't forget this," she vowed while pointing at her, which caused Link to let out another snicker.

"OR _you_ ," she added as she suddenly turned towards Link, who flinched back a bit at that. She wasn't sure if he did that on purpose, but wasn't about to start another argument while they were still on the run. She then saddled up and slid back slightly to make room for Link.

"Well, come on! We don't have all day!" she snapped in annoyance when she saw Link hadn't moved.

"Uh, right!" he said as he then quickly hopped on in front of her before giving a light whip of the reins—which the horse obeyed without question.

Taki's eye twitched at that, annoyed how the two seemed to deliberately gang up on her like that. Even more so when she could hear Link breathe out a few more chuckles. He'll have to thank Riki for giving him the idea. Or rather, played the same trick on him along with a few others he managed to get over on Link. Taki, however, was less than amused.

'You are SO going to pay for that,' she mentally vowed, further convinced that was all on purpose.

An ominous feeling suddenly surrounded Link as he could feel Taki glaring daggers at him from behind—as if impending doom would soon be upon him. "So, um...where to?" he lamely asked, trying to ignore the dooming sensation he was feeling.

"...That way," she answered, taking a deep breath before she did to try to calm herself. "We are directly east of Osaka and so should only take half an hour or so to get there. I will let you know where to go from there."

Link wordlessly obeyed, but Taki could still feel him grinning widely in front of her, making her twitch once more. Was it too early for her to want to kill her friend?...again?

* * *

They arrived at the outskirts of Osaka roughly half an hour later like Taki said, by now the sun starting to rise like the land was known for. She then guided them to the alleyways, avoiding as much contact as possible. 'Smells, too,' he thought as he looked around.

"Link, there is something I wish to discuss with you," she stated, getting his attention.

"Sure, what's up?" he replied, turning his head back slightly.

"...'What's up?'" she inquired, a little confused.

"Oh...I meant, 'What did you want to discuss?'" he explained. He had to admit, he seemed to use a lot more expressions than he thought that were normal to him but not known to this world. 'I'll have to see what expressions _this_ world uses and make it easier that way,' he thought to himself.

"I see...well, a couple things actually. First, I know you are able to store your weaponry with that...magic of yours. Are you able to store something practical for traveling? Such as...clothing and supplies?"

"Hai. I have other clothes and supplies as well. Quite a bit, actually. Why?" he asked, wondering where she was going with this.

"I have been thinking...it has come to my attention that you were going after Soul Edge out in Europe, correct?"

"Right..."

"I have gone after Soul Edge before, and there have been an increase of rumors of it reappearing as of late. I had planned to follow up on them, but I had an urgent matter to attend to with...my master," she said, hesitating a little at the end. Link's eyes softened at that but stayed quiet as she continued. "But...now that that mission is completed, I have since decided to pursue Soul Edge as well. And since you were already heading that way, I felt it would only make sense if we made the journey together."

Link's eyes widened at that. Was she seriously suggesting they-

"Are you-So, are you wanting to join...um, that is, did you want to travel with-um..." Link found himself very excited, and for some reason rather nervous, unable to find the words he wanted to say at what Taki was suggesting. He took another deep breath before speaking again.

"Do you want to come with me to Europe, then?"

Taki raised an eyebrow at his nervous behavior. It reminded her of several men she had worked with, in and out of the Fu-Ma, who behaved similarly when they tried courting her (i.e., asking her out). However, she did not gather that was the case with Link, given their age difference, and mentally waved it off as merely being excited at having a travel companion...though she had to admit he looked rather kawaii at how he asked-

'What the-Did I seriously just think that word!?' She was starting to wonder if that blast she was caught in with Link affected her more than she thought, but mentally pushed it aside before replying.

"If that is not too much trouble," she replied with a nod.

Link took that as her way of saying "yes" before a bright smile adorned his face. "O-Of course! And it's no trouble at all. Especially traveling with a friend," he added with another smile.

Taki stared back a little at that, still not quite used to the term. And yet there was something about him and his cheerful demeanor that made her not feel as awkward about it. "...Indeed. Plus our combined resources should make our travels considerably easier. Stop here."

They stopped at a broken down building in the middle of an alley. It looked abandoned from what Link could tell, almost ready to fall apart from the looks of it. "Now, back to my first question," Taki continued, "how much more can you store with your magic?"

Link looked at her a bit before going into a thinking pose. That was a good question, actually. He wasn't fully sure how his Sheikah Scroll worked in that regard. After his journey in Termina, he had given away all his masks, or in the case of the transformation masks, buried them with the deceased except the Fierce Deity Mask, which he gave to the Happy Mask Salesman when he encountered him again upon his return to Hyrule. He felt very wary of that mask after his battle for Majora. It felt like the spirit within the mask was very aggressive...perhaps too much so, and so Link decided it was not worth keeping despite its power. He was pretty sure he made the Happy Mask Salesman's day as he was delighted at having yet another rare mask to add to his collection.

He also left behind some other items he had collected such as the Lens of Truth and Mirror Shield among others, feeling they belonged where he had found them instead of keeping them. He did keep those that were specifically gifts or prizes like the Hookshot from that fisherman, the bottles, and pictograph among others. The latter, he could recall helping someone in his travels sometime after his adventure in Termina. He said he would be able to improve its functions, including the number of pictures it could take as well as take pictures in color as opposed to the stale images it was able to take previously.

Now he could store up to five pictures at once, but there was also a feature added that could let him physically print the picture onto a special type of paper stored in the device itself and could hold up to 20 pages of this paper at once, though these could not be overridden when printed.

"Mm, I think I can store quite a bit more. I'm not really sure how _much_ more, but I can easily store a considerable amount of clothes and supplies."

"Well, if that is the case," she started before hopping off, "I will gather what I have. If anything cannot be taken, I shall simply leave here. This particular location I store a bit more, so it will take a couple minutes. Wait here, while I gather them," she said before entering through a broken window. He was a little nervous at that. Did someone live here? Probably not, but if someone saw them, it would likely raise an alarm.

Fortunately, no such thing occurred as she came back out just a few minutes later with multiple bags and backpacks. He also noticed how she was no longer wearing her red outfit but instead was now wearing blue. It looked very much like her red outfit, with the only difference seeming to be the color. She then pulled out a pair of hooded cloaks that was not unlike the one he received from Hachibei and gave one to Link.

"Here. This is the smallest one I have. Hopefully it is not too long," she said as she put hers on. Link hopped off and did the same, the cloak just barely touching the ground as he stood upright, something Taki noticed. "Hmm...Will that be a problem?" she asked.

Link walked a little, testing it out. "I don't think so...just have to make sure I'm not stepping on it when I start moving, but otherwise it's fine."

"Good enough. I'll see if I can shorten it later. Now, shall we see what can be stored?"

Link nodded and walked over to her various travel gear, but just as he was reaching into his tunic, he suddenly gave a cheeky smile before turning so she couldn't see what he was doing, making her briefly widen her eyes before narrowing at his actions. She was sure he had a cheeky grin on his face as she crossed her arms at that. He seemed to really like messing with her for whatever reason. Did he do that with everyone? Or just her? Either way, it just renewed her vow to get even with him someday.

She watched as he went through what sounded like paper to her, then appeared to be moving and then pressing his finger on it a few times as if marking his spot on a map before seemingly folding it and putting it back in his tunic. He then turned around and grabbed each bag or item one at a time, said a brief command, and one by one she watched in silent amazement as they all seemingly vanished into thin air.

"Hmm...interesting," she said as if only slightly impressed, when inside she was very much impressed. She was already imagining the many uses of storing objects in such a way. And without weighing him down, it seemed, judging how light he was when she carried him when he was injured.

"Yep! Neat, huh?" he said before she saw him put something back in his cloak. At the very least she knew it was stored in something physical and made of paper. A type of ofuda perhaps?

"...I must admit. We ninja can use magic, but nothing quite so advanced. Or convenient, for that matter," she said calmly while making note of just how effective that magic was for traveling. What else could it be used for? Which also begged the question. "Just what was it that allowed you to do that? What kind of magic was that?" she asked, wondering if he'll answer this time.

Link stayed silent a few moments as he thought about how to reply. "Mm...Can you keep a secret?" he asked hesitantly.

'Hmm, it seems it is a rather sensitive subject for him,' she thought as she observed his hesitance. Likely something he did not want to advertise about. Something she respected, given her trade as a ninja. She was nonetheless curious and nodded. "Of course," Taki nodded, moving closer and bending down to what Link was going to whisper.

"So can I," he said before suddenly turning around and hopped on their horse.

...

...

Complete silence, as Taki blinked a couple times at what just happened.

'3...2...1...' Link mentally counted down-

"Why you-" she started before slowly taking a deep breath to calm herself. "Very funny," she said sarcastically as she put her hands on her hips in annoyance, "...You are very much enjoying this, aren't you?" she said evenly...despite the great urge to strangle his neck again. That's twice he's pulled a fast one on her. And by a teenager, no less! She must _really_ be losing it to have tricked twice like that. And in one day! Or one _hour_ , for that matter!

A familiar eyes-closed grin was on his face as he replied. "Yep! You should have seen the look on your face," he commented with a snicker. He was half expecting her to shout in annoyance again, but she managed to calm herself before then. Oh, well. It was still pretty funny. Once again, he'd have to thank Riki for that one.

Taki, however, was not amused and took another deep breath to calm herself...of which she had been having considerable difficulty doing so all morning, she thought. "You like messing with others like that, huh?" she asked threateningly, a touch of annoyance in her voice.

"Well...Just with friends," he replied a little slowly, hoping he didn't offend her. "That's what friends do. They have fun with each other. That's all."

"Is that a fact?" she again said threateningly. The last thing she needed was for her new friend to unintentionally tarnish her image, and she was not about to be baited into playing such childish games. She was just about to move forward and threaten him with the intention to stop such antics with her when she caught herself at the last second and hesitated, remembering the last time she spoke in such a tone with him—and remembering the horse, who looked at her as if ready to make a move. Her eye twitched a little at that, and so instead, she simply crossed arms as she turned her attention back to Link and wondered how to approach this.

Taki was not a people person, to say the least. It didn't help that she had been used to traveling alone for over a decade now. As such, her social skills were more or less limited to discussing missions with clients—and certainly not with kids or teenagers. She had on occasion spoken with children of noblemen during escort missions—usually with less than pleasant results as they often got intimidated by her, usually telling them not to distract her and to stop annoying her, and so dared not speak to her again out of fear (or hurt). That likely contributed to her reputation as an "ice queen," now that she thought about it, and probably why some clients never hired her again.

And if she followed the same approach here with Link, that likely would result in the same thing and would genuinely hurt him more than she intended, possibly ending the friendship they had—and after just befriending him, too, which was still a strange concept to her. Ninja she may be, but she was ultimately human before she was a ninja—even if she had difficulty expressing herself as such. So what approach did she want to take here?

Suddenly, another thought came to her, yet again surprising her that she would think of something like this in the first place but one she nonetheless explored. Despite her unwillingness to participate in such foolish games like that, she also wasn't one to just let something like that go unchallenged—especially when she was down 0-2 like that. The fact that Link looked to be one who would bring that fact up when she didn't want him to didn't help matters. She had a reputation to uphold, after all, and so she wasn't going to let a kid affect her image like that—whether by his actions or her responses to them. So what could she do to accomplish both at once?

'Hmm...Perhaps I could even the score in more... _subtle_ manners but without being open about it? Hai...that might work. And then he would be less likely to bring it up in conversation. Hai...I think that will work perfectly,' she thought, an uncharacteristic smirk appearing on her face. One that Link noticed and couldn't help but shiver at.

"Well, one thing you should know," she explained before calmly hopping on behind him (which the horse made no move this time) and leaned down to whisper in his ear, making him shiver in the process, "you're looking at a ninja who's made a living out of attacking people who least expect it and can make less noise than a cat. I should know. I've completed a stealth training exercise before anyone in the clan knew I had even begun. So if you're not careful, you may find _yourself_ on the receiving end of something...funny," she said dangerously, letting that statement sink in with another unseen smirk.

NOW Link was nervous. He had seen how intimidating she could be, but this was honestly probably the scariest he had seen her at this point, unconsciously swallowing in nervousness. "Now, let us continue on," she said normally, getting his attention again. "I know not if or when any ships will be traveling to Europe, but we best move now before any such ship leaves."

"R-Right," Link replied before lightly whipping the reins. As they continued on, Link couldn't help but think back to what Taki said earlier, about finding _himself_ on the receiving end of something funny. To him, that meant she was going to get back at him...which meant he'd have to keep on his toes. He hoped she didn't take it the wrong way, but he didn't want to risk an argument and so stayed silent. Still, he knew Taki didn't have much of a childhood, and so never knew the luxury of having fun or playing such games as a kid.

That's ultimately what he intended—just to help her loosen up and enjoy life a little bit. If he could get her to smile every once in a while, then to him it would still be worth it...even if Taki _might_ just end up wanting to kill him in the process, which based on prior reactions, very well might be the case.

His thoughts were interrupted as he fought done another blush at the feeling Taki wrap her arms around him again as they trotted forward. He still wasn't used to that, though wasn't necessarily uncomfortable from it either, for some reason. Plus...was she holding him a little tighter than before?

"Also...there was one other thing I wanted to ask," she said suddenly.

'Uh, oh...' Link thought, thinking she was going to get back at him. The fact he was in no position to defend himself with the way she was holding him made his heart race a bit. "I've actually been meaning to ask for awhile but never really had an opportune moment to do so as it never really came up."

That threw Link off. And she spoke rather...softly. Even for her. "Well, sure. What is it?" he asked, turning back slightly, half expecting her to get back at him in some way, only to be surprised to see a softer look on her face, much like last night, he noticed.

"Tell me...how is Chie-chan doing?"

Link blinked and raised his eyebrows in slight surprise for several seconds before smiling warmly at her as he began to share his time with Chie and her family.

* * *

The two had a pleasant conversation discussing their mutual friend Chie and her family as they rode to their destination. Taki felt comforted with how Chie had been doing and was surprised at hearing she had a child of her own named Riki, a fact that Li Long did not seem to be aware of. If she ever encountered him, she'll have to be sure to relay that fact to him.

Hearing Link defeat Hachibei himself DEFINITELY got her attention. The fact that one so young could genuinely defeat him was nothing short of remarkable. Just how skilled was he? She would definitely have to spar with him to see for herself what he could do.

They finally stopped near Port 3 where ships have been known to travel to and from the west. It appeared they were loading cargo and supplies when they arrived, indicating they were about getting ready to set sail. Taki went alone to speak with the captain, taking some rupees with her that Link showed her previously to pay for passage.

Link waited with a bit of nervousness and apprehension. Not so much for the trip itself as mush as the horse. During their conversation, she mentioned the likelihood of the ship (if they even found one) not willing to take a horse with them. As expected, Link was saddened at that possibility and so was hoping they would be willing to make an exception.

After several minutes Taki came back, her usual neutral expression preventing Link from determining if she had good news or not. "Well, I have good news and bad news."

Link's heart immediately sank at that, figuring what she was going to say. "What did you find out?"

"The good news is this ship is indeed heading towards Europe and, after showing him the rupees you gave me, they are willing to take us with them. They are travelling as far as Persia, which is near the edge of Europe, and we can journey on foot from there."

"...And the bad news?" Link asked hesitantly.

"The bad news...is they are not willing to also take a horse with them as they have no accommodations for one, let alone two extra passengers."

As expected, a saddened look adorned Link's face. "They can't make an exception? Not even more rupees? I can give him over a hundred rupees easy," he stated with a small bit of desperation in his voice.

"Unfortunately, no," she said softly, giving a small shake of her head. "I even offered the suggestion to him, but he would not budge on the subject no matter how much money we tried to bribe him with. Something about a very unpleasant experience delivering horses in the past and did not want a similar event happening again."

Link turned to the horse who was standing next to him, petting her in sadness. The horse seemed to understand the situation and gave what appeared to light whimpering/whinnying sounds as the two looked at each other.

Taki may had been annoyed at the horse earlier, but she also knew the horse was responsible for allowing their escape-twice, actually. Seeing the two softened her look a bit before she continued. "It gets worse," she continued, getting their attention again. "We have to decide now, and if we accept, we only have half an hour to take care of the horse before they set sail. That is how long they are willing to take to obtain additional food and supplies for us, as they were nearly done loading their cargo when I was speaking with the captain."

Now Link wasn't sure what to do. He hated having to leave friends behind, and it seemed to be happening relatively frequently as of late. First his friends from home, then Hachibei and his family, then Setsuka-chan, now his horse whom he had been growing fond of and also reminded him of Epona. Did he risk it and see if other ships would be willing to take all three of them? Or stick with the current offer given but have to leave behind his friend?

"Do you think other ships would be willing accept us _and_ horses?" he asked Taki.

"I doubt it. I thought of that, but an official I spoke with that helps manage the ships going in and out did not know of any other ships he knew of that were traveling to Europe in the near future," Taki replied. "I know it is not ideal," she stated upon seeing Link look down again, "but this may be our best and only chance to travel to Europe, lest the Fu-Ma track us before then."

Link stayed silent, resting his head against the horse as he mulled over what to do. He stayed silent for about half a minute before Taki spoke up again. "If you are worried about the safety of your horse, I know someone nearby who may be willing to take her in. He would take good care of her...if you are willing."

That got Link to look back at her again. "Who?"

"He is from a rival clan. One that the Fu-Ma are not enemies with, necessarily, but not allies either. He in fact gave me the lead on where to find Toki in exchange for...payment," she said slowly at the end.

Link noticed her hesitation at the end. "What sort of...payment exactly?"

"I was unable to provide compensation at the time, and so I stated I would pay him at a later date. If it wasn't for the fact he knew of my reputation, he likely would not have accepted the terms and would have wanted payment up front." She saw the look on Link's face who was about to speak before she held up a hand, anticipating what he was likely thinking.

"Yes, I would have asked if you could spare a few rupees to help pay my debt, and no, this was not something I had intended with your horse. Previous...disagreements not withstanding," she added as she briefly glanced at the horse in question that had bucked her off, her face staying neutral as she did only to soften slightly upon looking back at Link. As expected, Link did not reply, his unasked questions having been answered, though that last part hadn't even crossed his mind until now, but he ignored it. Seeing this, she continued with a much softer tone than she normally spoke with.

"Normally, I would not consider the idea for you to give up your horse, as I can see the two of you have gotten close. But under the current conditions, this is the best offer I can provide. And while I am not in friendly relations with him enough to know too much about him personally, I do know that he is good with horses, and I know he would treat her well."

Link looked down in thought for a bit before turning to his horse, holding up her head in his hands while looking sadly at her. "Well...what do you think, girl? What do you think is best?"

Taki stayed back and let him converse with the horse, who made additional whimpering/whinnying sounds as he talked to her. She found it rather unusual to ask a horse for an opinion, and yet she noticed how the horse turned to the side upon being asked that, almost as if thinking it over. She could generally read a horse's behavior and determine how they were doing, but this horse seemed to exhibit higher intelligence than usual, seemingly able to understand exactly what she and Link had been saying. She watched in mild fascination as she watched the boy continue conversing with his horse for about a couple minutes.

"Are you sure?" she finally heard him ask the horse. "You are sure about this?"

'Sure about what? What did the horse decide?' A question which she found herself was in and of itself odd in asking. And...did the horse just nod?

"Alright...if you're sure. I'll miss you," he stated sadly before giving the horse a large hug, who nuzzled her snout against him in return before Link finally turned back to Taki.

"She says it's alright...and we'll do as you suggested."

Taki briefly looked between the two, still a bit surprised at the manner in which Link made the decision but ignored it and simply nodded. "Very well. I will inform the captain, and then we will meet with my contact. I just hope it won't take long to get in touch with him," she said before speaking to the captain again.

And as Link waited for Taki, he couldn't help but feel a little sad at this turn of events. Even though he just met the horse, it felt as if they knew each other forever. Still, it didn't make it easier to leave behind another friend. But the horse seemed to understand his plight and how important it was for him to go on this ship. And perhaps sense Taki was genuine in knowing someone would take care of her despite their...disagreement earlier, as she put it (which briefly brought out a chuckle out of him at that). He just hoped it would all work out as Taki suggested.

* * *

( _Nearly half an hour later_ )

A man in his early fifties was waiting impatiently on his ship. He had stated he would give half an hour to that Taki woman and her companion to take care of the horse and get back to his ship. He had transported Taki to Europe before, and she was known to be prompt with her timing, but she was starting to test his patience. The fact she was taking another with her put another burden on him, but he had to admit those gems were indeed the real deal, and he wasn't one to turn down a quick profit like that. Heck, those jewels were probably worth more than his entire cargo. But their time was almost up, and he didn't want to wait any longer than necessary.

"They're not here, captain. Should we cast off?" one of his crew asked him.

"They have a minute left. If they be not in sight by then, then we set sail. Until then, ready the anchor."

"Aye, sir," he saluted before doing just that.

A minute later, he still saw no sign of them. With a heavy sigh, he turned towards his men and gave the order. "Alright, their time be up. Raise anchor, now-"

"Captain! Look! I see something!" another sailor shouted and pointed towards the docks.

The captain turned back to where he was pointing and saw two familiar cloaked figures running hastily towards his ship, the smaller one stumbling once or twice. "Well, it be about bloody time. Hold up, mateys!" he shouted to the anchormen.

A minute later they finally arrived, slowing down from their sprint as they arrived. "Took ye, long enough. I was afraid ye weren't gonna make it," he stated, crossing his arms at them.

"Apologies, captain. It took a little longer than expected to take care of the horse. Here are the rest of the gems, as agreed," she said as she held out a small bag.

The captain took the bag and opened them to reveal the gems inside. A pleased smile escaped the captain's lips as he admired them. "Well, I reckon these will be worth the wait, my dear. By the way, who be yer traveling companion, anyway? I've known ye fer years and thought ye always traveled solo?" he asked as he looked at the person in question.

"This is Link. Link, this is Captain Muramasa."

"Ohayō gozaimasu, Captain Muramasa," Link greeted with a bow and a smile. In the process, the captain managed to get a better look at him through the hood and was not pleased at what he saw.

"Ye be takin a _kid_ with ye!? And a gaijin at that? What be going on here, woman? Why bring a kid aboard me ship? Last thing I need be a nosy troublemaker goin around me ship and-"

"Hey!"

The two turned to Link, both a bit surprised at his outburst. "I'm not a kid. I'm an adult even if I don't look like it," he said a little softer. "And besides, I'm the one paying for this trip with those gems. Without me, they wouldn't be in your hand right now."

The captain raised an eyebrow at that fact as he looked between the gems and Link a bit before looking at Taki. "This be true? The gems came from the kid here?" he asked while Link frowned at the kid comment.

Taki stayed calm, though inside wished Link hadn't disclosed that fact. "Hai. A reward for helping a princess, to my understanding. As for why he is with me, I have my reasons. And that is all you need to know. And I can I assure you he will not cause any trouble during the trip."

"A princess, huh? Ya sure he be not pulling yer leg, woman?" he asked disbelievingly, crossing his arms for emphasis.

"If I thought he was lying to me, he would not be traveling with me. Now, you have your payment. Are we clear to sail on your ship?" she replied, wanting to get moving.

The captain looked between the two a bit with a stern look, then at the gems in his hand before finally pocketing them. "Aye, that ye be. Now listen up, both of ye, 'specially the kid," he said authoritatively, ignoring the annoyed look he gave him at the "kid" comment, "My ship, my rules. Ya keep yer hands to yerself and don't get in the way of me men. Do not go anywheres on me ship without permission or without an escort. Ya can roam up here all ye want as long as ye don't get in anyone's way of their work or unless I says otherwise. Got it?"

"Hai, captain," they replied with a bow though Link was still a bit annoyed at his attitude towards him.

"Good. Alright, men! Anchors aweigh and hold the tiller steady! It's time we head off!"

"YOSH!" came the replies from the crew.

* * *

Back on the docks, an official walked along the docks by the coast, taking note on his papers of the recent ships that had set sail thus far. As he checked his notes on the expected daily traffic, he was suddenly surprised as a pair of hands grabbed him and pulled him aside. He started panicking, wondering who it was that grabbed him and why, but the figure stood behind him with a hand over his mouth, preventing him from identifying his abductor or yelling for help.

"Keep your voice down, and you will live. I just need a little piece of information from you, and I then will leave you unharmed. Understand?" a calm yet dangerous voice told him. Not in a position to argue, he quickly nodded in reply.

"Now, that ship that just left Port 3. Where was that ship headed?"

The official swallowed a lump in his throat in nervousness as the man slowly took his hand off his mouth. He hesitated a moment to catch his bearings before replying. "P-Persia. S-Somewhere in the gulf area," he replied softly as he began to sweat.

"Good. That was all I needed. Good day," the man stated before abruptly shoving the official forward. The official stumbled several steps but managed to recover his balance. He quickly turned around to see who his assailant was, only to blink in surprise to see no one there. He looked all around the area, but found no one he didn't recognize. He let out a sigh of relief at the ordeal, glad he was still alive.

"I better inform the guards. They'll want to hear about this," he said to himself as he went to do just that.

* * *

On a nearby ledge, a hooded-figure watched as the ship in question sailed off into the distance. "Interesting. The boy had done the impossible. He befriended the elusive Taki no Fu-Ma and even convinced her to join him in his travels."

As the sun continued rising, the hooded-figure of Zasalamel was revealed in the light. After talking with that official, he now knew where they were headed and could plan his next move from there. As he expected, the boy was making his way to Europe to find Soul Edge just like he hoped. He had been watching him ever since he fought that samurai but had to stay back when they were escaping from the Fu-Ma, lest he risk being detected by that clan and their heightened senses.

In that time, he kept a safe distance and was very much surprised at the most recent developments. Zasalamel had been gathering information in these lands related to Soul Edge ever since that energy disturbance several weeks ago. In that time, he later heard of the infamous nuke-nin Taki and her reputation of being a loner. As such, to see her traveling with the boy he saw earlier was most unexpected.

"This could be a problem," he said at their team up. He could take on either one by himself, no matter how skilled they were. Together, though, they could very well ruin his plans in regards to Soul Edge. The boy in particular.

"I'll have to keep an eye on them when they arrive. For now, I'll just have to wait," he said before vanishing in a flash of light.

* * *

 **A/N: And, done! I was originally going to stop it after Taki asked how Chie was doing, but since the title was "Decisions", I felt I should include the part with Link and the horse.**

 **I imagine you were expecting Link to get a view of Taki in the hot spring, yes? Well, I thought about it but decided to switch it around this time and have Taki be the one to get a view of Link just to show sometimes such incidents happen the other way around.**

 **I debated Link traveling with the horse and on land starting in China but decided to stick with the sea route, and I wasn't under the impression most Japanese ships generally transported horses back then, so I decided despite how much it hurt to not have the pair take the horse with them.**

 **As for the dynamic between Link and Taki, my approach is for Taki to more or less be her usual calm and collected self but deep inside have a hidden competitive and somewhat playful side she'd kept buried for so long that Link would slowly bring out of her, but not in such a way as to tarnish or otherwise negatively affect her image and reputation as a stoic, fierce ninja. Hopefully, I'll do a decent job at it as the story progresses.**

 **So after a pleasant conversation, the two have cemented their friendship and joined up to go after Soul Edge. Then after finding a ship, they unfortunately had to leave behind the horse that was instrumental in their escape from the Fu-Ma before they setting sail to Europe.** **And then there's Zasalamel. Just what is he up to?** **And how will the trip to Europe go? And how will Link fare being aboard a ship for the first time?**

 **Find out next time!**

 **For now, this is Agent Ghost-Writer 000 signing off.**


	15. Chapter 15 - Journey to the West I

**A/N: Hi everyone** **! Yes, I am still continuing this story, and I have a second chapter already in the works but wanted to get this posted as soon as I could. I'm thinking of holding off on the OOT one I started for the time being and instead do a shorter one. I'm thinking of a novelization of the first Ninja Gaiden game for the NES. I did not see anyone else do one that I could see, so I thought maybe I could be the first. Just have to figure out how to best describe a story as realistic as possible while taken into account unrealistic parts like the platforming and large pitfalls in some areas like in Act II.**

 **But for now, on with this story!**

 **.**

This is a sentence. - Narration. No character speaking or thinking.

"This is a sentence." - Character speaking out loud.

'This is a sentence.' - Character speaking in his/her head.

This _is_ a sentence. - Emphasis placed on the italic word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

This IS a sentence. - Same as with the single italic, just a variation of expressing the emphasis.

 _This is a sentence. -_ All italics means the event is happening in a dream or flashback of which I would give a quick note prior saying a dream or flashback is occurring.

 _This_ is _a sentence_. - During a dream or flashback, emphasis placed in the normal text word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

 **.**

 **I do not own The Legend of Zelda or Soul Calibur.**

* * *

 **Chapter 15 - Journey to the West I**

Link was a bit excited at having been on a ship for the first time, or at least one this big if he counted the boat on that cruise in Termina in the swamp. Shortly after setting sail, Link quickly ran towards the railings to see the ocean and watched the horizon and the waves around him. Not since Termina had he seen the ocean, and he was just as amazed then as he was now. Of course, last time he sailed on anything was on the back of a giant turtle, which was...much different than sailing on a ship. But still, he was excited, nonetheless.

As he turned slightly to see the slowly disappearing shore, a slightly saddened look slowly adorned his face as he thought back to when they gave away the horse to Taki's contact not long ago...

* * *

 _(Flashback - roughly half an hour earlier)_

 _After Taki spoke with the captain, they headed towards their destination. As they did, Taki filled Link in on what she knew of the person they were meeting. Rumor has it that he used to be from a ninja clan based in China but defected in disapproval of the clan's methods and formed his own clan in Japan. The clan grew and later obtained rather widespread popularity in the land in just a few short decades. In that time, their power and influence eventually was enough to contend with that of the Fu-Ma, and it was only a matter of time before conflicts between the clans arose. As expected, every now and then they had crossed swords with the Fu-Ma, at one point almost going to war with them before an uneasy truce was signed._

 _Past transgressions would be forgotten as long as no future transgressions were made and as long as future missions that both clans took did not result in both sides being against each other. As a result, both sides would unusually ask their clients up front if the other clan was involved in any way. Again, very unusual, but it was the best solution they could come up with and sometimes resulted in very profitable missions having to be turned down by both sides. Nonetheless, it succeeded in preventing future conflicts with them that Taki was aware of._

 _Another issue that arose between the clans was how clients would sometimes switch clans for their services. While this happened with both sides, Taki explained how she had become a popular choice for clients to hire as her reputation grew, and several clients she would work with she later found out had previously worked with the contact they were meeting. As such, this man has resented her ever since, though when the opportunity to get ahead of the Fu-Ma presented itself in the form of the civil war within the Fu-Ma clan, he was willing to let that slide and make the deal with Taki to share Toki's recent whereabouts in exchange for later payment._

 _Even so, that did not necessarily mean he and Taki would get along well afterwards, and both agreed this was a one-time only deal._

 _The two were heading to their destination to meet with Taki's contact per her directions. They were close to turning into an alley to meet with their contact, only for the two be stopped by a couple merchants as they were passing a nearby fruit stand. "Ah! Come, come! Fresh fruit for you! Most delicious and most nutritious they are! Would you like some apples? Perhaps bananas?" one merchant stated to them._

 _"Or maybe some delicious watermelon? All very good and very affordable!" the other merchant asked them in excitement as they passed by, gesturing to each fruit as he spoke._

 _Taki briefly looked at their selections as if interested. "You have quite a selection, I see. I imagine it can sometimes get quite warm sitting out all day in the hot yellow sun," Taki replied._

 _The merchants' eyes twinkled a bit at that. "Mm, indeed. But fresh fruit helps keep us cool."_

 _"And can do the same for you!"_

 _"Perhaps. But what I see does not impress. Let us move on," she said to Link, who had witnessed the exchange with confusion but said nothing and did as instructed._

 _"Aww...very well," he said, their shoulders drooping slightly before quickly cheering up and started advertising to the next passerby._

 _They turned the corner into an alley, turning once more so they were directly behind the building the fruit stand was stationed before stopping. "What are we stopping here for?"_

 _"You'll see. Just stay as you are and leave the talking to me," was all Taki replied._

 _Link was a little nervous, hoping they didn't have to wait long for whatever they were waiting for. Fortunately, it was only but a couple minutes later before another figure rounded the other corner of the building. One Link recognized as one of the merchants._

 _He appeared to be in his late fifties and was a little taller than Taki with black, graying hair tied in a ponytail. He had facial hair in the moustache and lower chin area but clean-shaven everywhere else. Beneath his kimono, Link could see what looked to be a black ninja's outfit with yellow sashes connecting from the shoulders to the midsection, leading him to conclude this was the ninja from the rival clan Taki had spoken of._

 _Seeing the yellow sashes reminded him of what Taki said to him earlier. The 'hot yellow sun.' A code word of some kind?_

 _The two stared at each other in silence, neither speaking a word for what seemed the longest time. Link just looked back and forth between the two, who both had intense looks on their faces. Almost as if they were both ready to fight in case things got out of hand._

 _"Takeda," she said simply with a nod._

 _"Taki," he returned in kind before raising an eyebrow at the other before him. "And who is this?"_

 _"His name is Link. He assisted me at the temple, and now he is with me," she replied._

 _Takeda gave him a long, intrigued look, occasionally looking back and forth between the two. He had to admit this was most unusual. Taki was_ not _here alone like he expected...and her companion looked to be a kid maybe half her age, if that. "Hmm...I must say this is most unlike you, Taki. I always thought you worked alone? Saying how you always worked_ better _alone. So why is the kid with you? Or are you perhaps finally looking to settle down?" he asked cheekily._ _Taki narrowed her eyes in annoyance as he continued._

 _"Have to say, he certainly looks a little young for you, no? Is our fair Taki into younger men?" he added with a small smirk on his face._

 _"Huh?" Link replied, tilting his head in confusion. What the heck was he talking about? And what did he mean by being "a little young" for her? Or Taki being "into younger men?"_

 _"Funny," Taki dryly replied. "We have no time for pleasantries, Takeda."_

 _"Who said we were exchanging pleasantries?" he quipped, getting another annoyed look from Taki._

 _"Listen, we're here to do business and we're in a hurry!" she said impatiently._

 _"Alright, alright," Takeda stated with a chuckle while raising his hands up in a placating gesture. "Tell me, though. Was the information helpful? Did you manage to find him? Or was he gone by the time you arrived?"_

 _Taki stayed silent, thinking how she wanted to reply and how much she was willing to share. "Hai, I found him there," she finally replied._

 _"Hmm...and what happened upon encountering him, if I may ask?"_

 _Again, Taki did not answer immediately as she thought it through. There was no doubt the soldiers would recognize the dead body of her master, and that information would get out eventually. With that in mind, she decided indulge him._

 _"It is over. The clan is dissolved," she replied softly._

 _"I see..." Takeda said slowly, reflecting on that a bit before continuing. "As much as I despised the man, my condolences for your loss, Taki-san," he stated softly before giving a light bow of respect, slightly surprising Taki at that given his earlier behavior._

 _"...Why? Considering our history, I would have expected disdain or bragging from you over the Fu-Ma's loss."_

 _A brief chuckle escaped Takeda's lips before he replied. "Don't get me wrong, having one less rival clan to deal with is always welcoming news. But I am not so heartless to know how much the man meant to you, or why you defected so as to protect your friend as you mentioned when we last spoke. If anything, I respected that about you, which was why I was willing to wait until now to receive payment as opposed to upfront like I normally would have done."_

 _That was a bit surprising to Taki, as that was not the impression she had gotten from the man, if their past history was any indication. Given their urgent situation, she decided to leave it at that as she continued. "I see. Well, as promised I am here to uphold my end of the deal."_

 _"Very well, then," he replied with a nod. "You promised a good payment in exchange for the information on your master, and I know you are a woman of your word. What is it you have to offer?"_

 _Taki then turned to Link. "If you would, Link?"_

 _Link let out a hesitant sigh before nodding slowly guiding the horse to Takeda before stopping in front of him. Takeda looked between them, expecting to receive a bag of money of some kind from the kid, only to see him gesture towards the horse and then look back to him. "Here she is..." the boy said softly._

 _At first Takeda was a bit confused before raising his eyebrows slightly. "You mean the horse?"_

 _"H-Hai," Link replied hesitantly. It still didn't fully settle well him, giving the horse like this. It almost felt like he was selling a friend like property._

 _"Your payment is this horse?" he said, turning to Taki._

 _"Correct. She is a flyer. Very fast, young, and quite healthy," Taki explained as Takeda starting inspecting the horse. He walked all around the horse, carefully inspecting each part of the horse for any deficiencies, especially the legs. As he circled back to the front, he then inspected the horse's teeth, prompting a frown on Link's face. Wasn't it considered rude to do that?_

 _"Hmm...she does indeed look very healthy. A very fine horse, actually. But tell me. Why a horse exactly? I would figure a fine horse such as this would be one_ you _would want to keep for yourself?" He then noticed the kid look away with a sad expression after he said that. "Hmm...or perhaps it is not_ your _horse, but_ his _?"_

 _The boy turned around quickly this time, confirming his suspicion. "I must say, that's cold. Even for you, Taki-san," crossing his arms as he spoke. "Selling the boy's horse to pay for your debt? I heard you were quite the ice queen, but this surprises even me."_

 _"It is_ nothing _of the sort, Takeda-san!" she quickly replied with more than a little agitation at being insulted like that,_ _rather surprising Takeda in the process as he never heard Taki almost shout before._

 _Taki took a deep breath to calm down a bit. She half expected such an assumption from him regarding the horse, but it affected her a little more than she thought it would. Did being called an 'ice queen' really bother her that much? Mentally shaking that off, she continued in a calmer tone._

 _"Unfortunately, where we are going does not accept horses, and so we have to make do with what we have. And besides," she said, getting Takeda's attention. "it was not_ I _that made this decision."_

 _A slight tilt of Takeda's head showed his confusion before turning to realization. "Ah, the boy made the decision himself?" he questioned as he looked at the boy in question. "Very interesting," he commented, only to get confused again at seeing the boy shake his head._

 _"No, I did not make the decision either," Link softly replied._

 _Now Takeda was all sorts of confused. "Then...if not you, who else would have made the decision?"_ _Once again, Link gestured towards the horse._

 _"Wait, the_ horse _made the decision?" he asked, and was again surprised when the boy nodded. "What game are you playing at?" he somewhat angrily asked them._

 _"It is_ no _game, Takeda-san," Taki declared rather forcefully, again surprising Takeda a bit. "I am not exaggerating when I say the horse did indeed make the decision, as difficult it may be to believe."_

 _Takeda paused, briefly looking between the two before crossing his arms towards Taki. "Explain, then."_

 _She took a deep breath to calm down before she gave a brief explanation of how the two had bonded and how instrumental it was in their escape, though she did not mention the part of them fighting and her nearly killing Link (or the horse throwing her off of her). She then mentioned the conversation she witnessed the boy had with the horse and how they came to a decision._

 _Takeda was rather surprised and still somewhat skeptical of it all, but he could tell both the boy and the horse looked rather saddened as Taki was giving her explanation, indicating there was at least some truth in what she described. He processed what he learned in silence for a minute, but as skeptical as he was, he decided it was not worth pushing the issue further._

 _As far as the deal was concerned, horses were expensive to buy, raise and maintain in general, and the cost to buy a horse would take years for an ordinary civilian to save. As such, this would indeed be a suitable exchange, and he could tell this one would indeed be very valuable to him and his clan. Plus, Taki mentioned it was originally used by the Fu-Ma, which they "borrowed" in their escape, and the idea of taking something that used to be in possession of their rival clan was also a very satisfying notion._

 _"I see. Very well, then. I accept your terms, Taki-san. Consider our debt settled," he said with a light bow of his head, which Taki returned in kind._

 _Upon hearing the deal had been made, Link gave the horse another sad hug, who rubbed her head against him in kind until Takeda came to them. Takeda gave a small, slightly saddened but reassuring smile to the both of them as he lightly petted the horse's mane and head, a soft look in his eyes as he did before he reached in his kimono and pulled out an apple, much to Link's surprise._

 _He then gently offered the apple to the horse, who looked at it for a bit, then to Takeda, then back to the apple. After a little hesitation, the horse then took a bite of the apple, followed by another after Takeda turned the apple for another bite. He gave another smile as he gently petted the horse again, satisfied she accepted his gift._

 _"I believe Taki was right," he said to Link as he petted the horse again. He then turned to the confused Link before speaking again. "This is indeed a very fine horse. And very intelligent from what I can gather. I can tell she means a lot to you, and I promise to take good care of her, young Link," he calmly stated while putting a hand on his shoulder._

 _Link looked at him a bit, then at the horse. He then blinked when he saw the horse give a small nod. As if saying it was alright, he thought. Seeing this, a sad yet happy smile adorned his face, feeling more assured the horse would be taken care of before nodding to Takeda. "However, I believe there is one thing missing before we part ways," Takeda added, getting their attention again._

 _"And what would that be?" Taki asked, wondering if he was going to ask for more as part of the deal or not._

 _"I've noticed that no name has been given to this horse since you have brought her here. As such, I believe a name should be given to her, don't you?" he replied before turning to Link. "And under the circumstances, I believe it only fitting if you were to do the honors."_

 _Link blinked at him in surprise, not having expected that. As he thought about it, it did sound wrong to not give a name to the horse. If she had a name before, he did not hear the Fu-Ma give one that he could recall. He then got into a thinking pose as he tried to come up with a good name. Now that he thought about, he had never given a name to_ anything _before. Everyone he encountered and every item he had obtained already had a name associated with them, so this was something new for him._

 _He spent the next couple minutes trying to come up with a name, deep in thought. He thought back to how they escaped from the Fu-Ma in the night, disappearing in a flash of light from his Light Arrow. As he did, he was looking at the horse before spotting the familiar white diamond on her forehead. He then smiled and nodded to himself before speaking. "How about, 'Diamond Flash?'"_

 _The horse rose her front legs up and whinnied in approval, prompting Link to laugh a bit. "Diamond Flash it is, then," he said before Diamond Flash rubbed her head against Link's in appreciation._

 _"A fine name, Link-san. And I daresay she likes it as well," Takeda commented at seeing their interaction._

 _Link then felt an arm on his shoulder and looked up to see Taki looking back at him. "My apologies to interrupt, but we must hurry, or we will miss our ship."_

 _A saddened look adorned Link's face before nodding and turning back to Diamond Flash to give one more hug. "Take care, girl. I'll miss you. Thank you for everything," he whispered as they looked in each other's eyes before Link finally turned and walked towards Taki, a sad yet happy smile on his face as he did._

* * *

(Flashback end)

He let out a sigh at the memory before shaking his head. He felt a little better about it all though, and truly felt Diamond Flash was in good hands.

He also thought back to everyone he met since arriving in this world. Hachibei-sensei, Chie, Riki, Setsuka-chan. He would miss all of them.

That last one gave him pause as he thought back to their last meeting. He was glad he was able to convince her to not pursue revenge, and she seemed a lot happier now when they parted ways. He kind of wished they could travel together and enjoy each other's company a little more, but the last thing he wanted to do was burden her with something as major as Soul Edge. Plus, she already had one burden lifted from her shoulders-no sense trying to burden her with another. He said a silent prayer, hoping she was doing alright and that they would meet again someday like she said they would.

"Enjoying the view?"

Link was slightly startled from his thoughts and turned towards the voice beside him. Walking near the railing next to him was Taki. "H-Hai. This is just second time I've sailed on the ocean. It's very...big. And pretty, too."

"It...is quite a sight, indeed," she eventually said. They stayed silent for a minute as they looked at the view. "Everything alright, Link?"

"Uh, hai...why?"

"No need to hide it from me, Link. I could tell something was troubling you. Your posture changed to one akin to sadness, and your eyes looked a bit downfallen as well. So tell me? What is it?...The horse, perhaps?" she added when Link did not immediately reply.

Link stayed silent for bit before finally nodding. "Hai...and leaving everyone I've met behind. Hachibei-sensei, Chie, Riki, Setsuka-chan. It's just...hard."

"Who?" Taki asked with a raised eyebrow. And why did he call her Setsuka- _chan,_ she thought?

Oh, yeah. He forgot he hadn't mentioned her yet. "Oh, uh, someone I met a little before you. I only met her once, but we got along well. I even helped her from pursuing revenge against someone who killed her master in a duel. She looked like a huge weight was lifted off her shoulders after that. Kind of like you, now that I think about it."

"Oh? How so?" she asked, not quite sure how to take that.

"Like now that you know Chie is alive, you also look like a huge weight was lifted off your shoulders. You look a little...happier after we first met. Well, certainly happier after trying to kill me, anyways," he added with a laugh.

Taki turned her head slightly at that. That was one memory she didn't want to be reminded of...and yet Link brought it up like it was nothing? Was he really that carefree? And forgiving?

"Do I, now?" she said slowly, still not quite sure how to respond to that.

"Hai! Your eyes look a little softer now, you don't talk as harsh as you used to, and you just...I don't know, look a little less tense then you used to."

Taki tilted her head at Link's response as she processed all this, letting out a "Hmm..." as she turned towards the ocean. Did he really see all this himself? That was rather observant of him, actually. It also gave her more perspective on how others might see her. Truth was, inside she did feel much better for the reason Link stated. Was she that obvious about it, though? She'll have to keep Link's observations in mind.

"By the way, what was that message you mentioned to Takeda? What was that about?" Link asked, interrupting her thoughts.

Taki did not reply as she continued looking out at the ocean, but she did let out an unusual smirk, much to Link's surprise and curiosity as she thought back to their meeting with her contact...

* * *

 _(Flashback - ten minutes earlier)_

 _"Takeda-san, a quick word, if I may?" Taki stated to the rival ninja while Link was coming up with a name for the horse._

 _Takeda gave a brief tilt of his head in curiosity before nodding and stepped a little bit from the boy and the horse towards Taki before speaking. "If this was about the_ cold _accusation earlier, I'll admit that was uncalled for-"_

 _"No," Taki interrupted, "but I accept your apology regardless. No, I was wondering if you would do me a favor?"_

 _Takeda raised an eyebrow at that. "First a deal and now a favor? Keep this up and rumors will start to spread about us. And you haven't even bought me a drink yet," he joked._

 _Taki just gave him a dry look. "Funny. Besides, I thought it was the man that was supposed to buy the woman a drink?" she quipped back_ _,_ _surprising Takeda as that was probably the first time Taki had told a joke in her life, that he was aware of. "No, actually I was thinking of spreading a different rumor across the land, if you'll help me."_

 _Combined with the fact Taki just told a joke, Takeda was now DEFINITELY curious what Taki was up to. "Hmm...most intriguing, Taki-san. And what sort of rumor are you looking to spread? Something about what happened at the temple? Or..." he trailed off as he glanced at the boy, "something related to the boy, perhaps?"_

 _"In part, hai," Taki replied with a nod. "The remaining Fu-Ma led by Geki now know of the boy traveling with me. They are still alive and will stop at nothing to see both of us dead, and it will not take them long to eventually figure out, or at least suspect, where we are going."_

 _"Let me guess...to Europe? For Soul Edge?"_

 _Takeda and his clan had largely stayed out of missions related to Soul Edge. In fact, that was what almost sparked a war between them and the Fu-Ma before the uneasy truce was signed between them, a fact Taki may or may not had been aware of._ _After that incident, they decided it was not worth the trouble in dealing with those shards, and so they sold the shards they had to rich collectors for profit, wiping their hands clean of the matter. It would not surprise him if the Fu-Ma eventually found out they had the shards and did something to take them, but that was of no concern to him._

 _"Naturally," Taki replied with a nod. "Since they will no doubt continue pursuing us and likely figure out where we will be going, I was wondering if you could spread rumors with false or misleading information regarding our location to at least delay their arrival in some way?"_

 _"Ah, I see. Classic misdirection. Not a bad strategy. But what do_ I _get from doing this?" he asked._

 _"Besides the satisfaction of watching Fu-Ma ninja run around in circles in a sort of wild goose chase?" she replied, playing to his rivalry with the clan._

 _Takeda once again was surprised at Taki's reply. "I must say, I think that's the second joke you've made in your entire life," he laughed, which just made Taki frown very briefly. Was she really that bad? More importantly, why did she suddenly care what people thought of her? "Perhaps I should also spread how Taki_ does _have a sense of humor after all?_ That _would definitely get people's attention, no?" His smirk turned into a somewhat nervous look at seeing Taki's unamused and rather ticked off look._

 _"How about we start spreading rumors of how Takeda got castrated and can no longer walk properly?" she threatened._

 _"N-Now, now. I was just joking," he replied with a smirk, only to take a step back out of instinct at seeing the very intense glare from Taki. He heard rumors of Taki having a very sharp and intimidating gaze, which eventually led some to call her an 'ice queen,' but he had to admit it was much different actually experiencing it as he was unable to suppress an intimidated cough before he continued speaking._

 _"(ahem) Like I said, I did not say I would not assist. And seeing them running in circles would indeed be very satisfying. But answer me one question in return."_

 _Taki stayed glaring at him for a bit from his earlier quip but slowly softened her gaze after seeing he would indeed help._ _"What is it?"_

 _"Why exactly is the boy with you? True he may have helped you, but what did he do that left such an impression as to let him travel with you? Let alone to Europe to find Soul Edge?...Or is he even aware of what the blade is?"_

 _"I think that was more than one question, Takeda-san," Taki dryly commented, prompting an acknowledged, amused shrug from Takeda._

 _"True. So, let's just stick with the first one. Why exactly is the boy with you?" he repeated._

 _Taki did not initially reply, looking towards the boy in question for a bit before replying. "In just one night, he saved my life twice. Despite his youth, he is exceptionally skilled for his age in combat. I know not where he came from, exactly, but I do know that he knows Soul Edge is evil and intends to destroy it. Since we have the same goal in mind, and combined with his...assistance towards me, I decided to let him tag along with me. Plus...I suppose I owe him for what he's done for me, and I'm a woman who always pays off her debts."_

 _That last part Takeda could agree with, but he could tell there was more to it than she was leading on; however, he doubted he could get any more from her, especially since she was in a hurry, and decided to leave it at that._

 _"I see. Very well. My only question now is how you want me to word the rumor being spread?"_

 _"The wording does not need to be too specific," she replied, glad Takeda did not press the issue more. "Merely give false information as to our current whereabouts and where we are headed to keep them occupied. Do, however, mention I am not alone and that I now have a...an apprentice with me. Can you do that for me?"_

 _"Hmm..." Takeda said to himself as he got into a brief thinking pose. He had to admit, Taki wasn't quite what he had expected, based on their first meeting. He was expecting her to be very cold, emotionally. Strictly business, no joking around. A true 'ice queen' as people described her. Instead, despite the very fierce glare she had given him_ — _which he had to admit was as intimidating as advertised_ — _she seemed to be slightly softer than before. Even made a couple jokes herself, which was a feat in and of itself. He wondered if maybe that boy had something to do with it? That was the best explanation he could come up with, and given what little he knew, it made sense. Still, very surprising nonetheless._

 _"I believe I can," he finally replied just as Link came up with the name of the horse._

 _Then after finishing the deal and parting ways, a small smile was on Taki's face as they left, saying a satisfied yet cryptic phrase to herself but in earshot of Link._

 _"Message sent."_

* * *

(End flashback)

Taki shook her head at that memory before finally replying. "It was a personal matter. Nothing to worry about. Now, there is something I wish to speak with you, Link," she said, changing the subject. "I want to go over a few details of our story for the captain, as well as what we can do to prepare for our journey in Europe."

* * *

As expected, a lot of attention was indeed drawn to them once the pair felt safe to take their cloaks off and reveal themselves, especially one as infamous as Fu-Ma no Taki. The captain and crew had questions they wanted to ask Taki, particularly why she was traveling with Link, or "the kid" as they sometimes refer to him as, much to his chagrin. Though also a few men were bold enough to try to sweet-talk Taki into sharing a room with them or otherwise try to get some "alone time" with her. Each one either got beaten, threatened with a blade to the throat, or got a shuriken or kunai thrown near their junk (or all of the above) with her saying if they asked again, next time she wouldn't miss.

As to the cover story, Link contributed with inspiration from Setsuka and her origin, which really wasn't far from his own apart from being from another world and raised in a forest of children. Ultimately, the story was Link was orphaned and found by a sword-master in the forest before his home was destroyed by the influence of Soul Edge. His encounter with Taki went exactly as it did happen but without the magic, oni, and a few minor changes to the trickery used to escape from the Fu-Ma. For helping him, Taki has since taken him as her apprentice. They had to repeat it a few times, but they finally stopped asking after awhile.

Eventually, Link found himself wandering the deck, watching whatever it was that sailors did as well as well as admire the view of the ocean for a bit. After a few hours, though, there wasn't much else to do on the ship and there wasn't much to explore, either. And Taki said it would take over two, maybe three months to get there? This sea trip was sounding less and less exciting than he thought.

"Link-san."

Link turned to see Taki walking up to him while adjusting her armor a bit. "Hey, Taki-ch...I mean, Taki-sama," he corrected himself. During their conversation, she instructed him to use "sama" instead of "chan" during their trip. One reason was to keep the guise of him being her apprentice, and the other was because she was still wanting to uphold her reputation and didn't want anyone asking questions...or otherwise get the wrong idea between them.

"Now that things have settled down, I believe it's time to see just what you can do," she said, drawing her blades. "To be my apprentice, I need to see just how skilled you really are."

Link's eyes lit up a bit at that. They never did finish their fight the first time because of...whatever it was that happened (he still needed to ask about that). He let out a competitive smirk as he wordlessly drew his sword and shield, though he did notice that in place of Mekki-Maru appeared to be a large kunai blade that was roughly the same size.

"Really? You think you stand a chance against, Taki-san, kid?" a crewmember shouted upon seeing them getting ready to fight, getting other crewmembers' attention.

"Hai, your, what? 13? 15 at most?" shouted another.

"Hai, you're way out of your league, kid."

"And in more ways than one," another laughed, getting several more to laugh with him.

Link gave the doubters a frown while putting his hands on his hips at their comments. He would think he would be used to this by now, but it still rubbed him the wrong way when they judged him by his physical age. Though he was a bit confused on that last one. Just what did he mean by "in more ways than one," and what was so funny about it?

"It seems you have a few doubters, Link-san," Taki commented.

At that, Link simply gave a shrug and got back into his fighting stance. "Perhaps. But I would be happy to show you what I can do, Taki-sama," he replied confidently.

"Good. I will not make it easy on you, though," she stated before sheathing her blades, getting into her familiar stance. "Begin!"

* * *

(Two Weeks Later - Somewhere back in Japan)

A mute woman was sweeping the floor at a remote inn, mindful of the guests sitting in the dining area. As she was sweeping, she passed near two guests who had just settled in for the night. Guests in ninja attire with yellow sashes connecting from the shoulders. As she passed by, she was able to overhear a part of their conversation.

"I tell you, it's true," one of them stated.

"Come now, this is Fu-Ma no Taki we're talking about," the other replied as he took a drink from his glass.

Chie's eyes lit up at that, briefly freezing in place before kept sweeping, as if she wasn't paying attention.

"I know, but as crazy as it sounds, it's true."

"Uh, huh. And what makes you believe Taki is now traveling with someone? Let alone a _gaijin_?" his partner asked, not buying his claim.

'A gaijin?' Chie thought as she kept listening. Could he mean-

"I overheard a couple guards from the Hoko Temple while in Kyoto. They said they had interrogated a couple surviving Fu-Ma they had captured there last week. You remember that incident?"

"Ah, hai. There was worry of an impending attack of some kind at that temple, only to find several Fu-Ma were scattered there. Alive _and_ dead."

"Correct. The guards mentioned that the Fu-Ma they interrogated said Taki was also there, and it was her they were after. What was even more interesting was she was seen escaping with an accomplice, whom they described as a gaijin in green."

Chie almost lost her step as soon as she heard that, eyes widened in surprise, but her actions were all unseen by the guests. "So what? Even if there _was_ a gaijin there, the Fu-Ma likely jumped to conclusions like they always do and misread the situation. Probably why they've essentially dissolved now, if you ask me."

"Perhaps. Except I heard the same story of Taki with the gaijin not just in Kyoto but also in Edo several days ago. AND while I was still in Edo, I heard a pair of travelers from the north claiming they saw a woman defend them from a group of bandits and specifically saw a young gaijin in green assisting her, only to see them vanish together before they could thank them."

That got his partner to pause a moment as he reflected on that. "That so? Hmm...very interesting."

"You think he's an apprentice of hers or something?"

"An APPRENTICE? Seriously, have you been drinking too much? Why the hell would you think something like that?" he asked incredulously.

A little off put by his friend's tone, he leaned forward a bit with a dry look on his face. "Maybe because the people I overheard said the boy was young, like 13. 15 tops from what they could tell."

"Nani!? Now, I KNOW you're full of it. Why would Taki associate with anyone, let alone anyone that _young_? And DON'T tell me she has an apprentice," he added, cutting off his friend who kept arguing with him.

Chie, meanwhile, kept slowly sweeping away from them until she reached the front door to sweep the gathered dust outside. Once she was outside, though, she slowly stopped, holding her broom in front of her as she thought of what she just heard. A warm smile adorned her face as she looked up into the sky. She stayed that way for a few minutes before hugging the broom closer to her.

'Message received.'

She let out a happy sigh at how everything turned out and couldn't have hoped for anything better. She had no doubt that was Taki's doing with that conversation between those ninja, and now _she_ knew that _Taki_ knew she was alive. All thanks to a young boy in green.

She silently said a brief prayer to herself, wishing the two a safe journey together as she continued sweeping, a bright smile on her face as she did. She couldn't wait to tell her family the good news!

* * *

(Elsewhere in Northern Honshu)

"I cannot thank you enough for your services. Your skills tipped the scales in our favor, and I daresay we would not have succeeded without your assistance. That we would not," a military commander of the Murakami clan addressed his guest, sharing a glass of sake with him. They had just won a decisive battle at Niigara against the new daimyo Toytomi Hideyoshi and his forces. With the change in leadership, the clan was faced with the option of siding with this new daimyo or oppose him. Ultimately, they decided to oppose, resulting in the new daimyo sending a fleet to destroy them for their insubordination, which ultimately did not bode well for them as their fleet was demolished.

"I'm flattered," the man said flatly, though the commander wasn't sure if he was being sincere or not.

"I am most serious, that I am. The way you jumped from ship to ship, slicing through hordes of enemies in heavy arrow and rifle fire with nothing but a few scratches on your armor to show for it is nothing short of extraordinary, that it is."

A brief smirk adorned the man's face before his hardened look returned. It was true, though. He was attacked from all sides almost nonstop from such projectile weapons, including those he charged at head on. One soldier witnessed him slice a pair of arrows that approached the samurai before charging a boat with three rifleman taking aim at him, hopping from boat to boat to do so, took two hits to his armored shoulders that barely fazed him, then BLOCKED a third bullet with his sword before jumping high towards the riflemen, slicing the rifle of one of them who had risen it above him in a vain attempt to protect himself, only to be cut apart just seconds later. But not after being given a very deadly stare by the samurai.

"Please, accept this in thanks for your services," he stated before handing him a bag with a considerable amount of money inside. The man took the bag with disinterest as he took another swig of his drink. "You seem...troubled, Mitsurugi-san, that you do. Something on your mind?"

At that, the man finally looked at the commander, and with a slightly softer look. "Apologies. I was looking for someone before catching wind of what was happening here. I had found no leads in that time, and now I am not sure where to look."

"Oh? And who is it you are looking for, if I may ask? Anyone I know?"

"Hmph. Unlikely. But this person I'm looking for is a very skilled warrior. Very skilled indeed..." he trailed off, looking to the side again, his hardened look returning.

Now, THAT got the commander's attention. For Mitsurugi to admit someone was very skilled MUST be a formidable warrior indeed. But with the way he said it, it almost sounded...personal. "Very interesting...That is perhaps the second time I've heard about a strong warrior lately, that it is."

Mitsurugi's head shot up towards the commander. "A SECOND strong warrior? Who was the first? Who are you talking about?" he asked impatiently, surprising the commander briefly at his sudden change in behavior that it took him a moment to recover his bearings.

"(Ahem) Well, lately I've heard rumors from my men about a warrior clad in azure armor appearing in the west, boasting the strength of a kami, to my understanding. To be honest, I heard this rumor four years ago before it slowly stopped. Now the rumors seem to be resurfacing, that they are. Any truth to this, you think?" he asked.

"Hmm...perhaps," he said slowly. The Azure Knight? Returned? This was the most exciting thing he heard all day. More exciting than the major battle he just participated in just hours earlier that lasted through all of yesterday to sunrise. Maybe this time he could finally have that duel he so longed for, the duel with the Azure Knight. His heart started beating rapidly at this revelation as a grin started forming on his lips.

"If I may ask, who is this other strong warrior you mentioned? Perhaps someone who participated in the Hoko Temple incident not long ago?" the commander asked, interrupting Mitsurugi's thoughts.

Mitsurugi blinked at that as the grin suddenly turned into a rather confused look. "What incident? What happened?" he asked curiously.

The commander paused to take another drink before giving a slight shrug as he continued. "Well, a couple weeks ago, there was a report of a few explosions happening at night at that temple, and several Fu-Ma were found there. Both dead _and_ alive, that they were."

A surprised but interested look appeared on the samurai's face upon hearing that. "Fu-Ma, you say?"

"Indeed. Why they were there or if they were responsible for the attack has not yet been determined from what I have heard thus far. However, rumor was the infamous Fu-Ma no Taki was seen leaving the scene, leaving them to believe that she was their target. Along with a gaijin who was seen leaving with her, curiously enough."

Mitsurugi's head tilted slightly at this sudden piece of information as the commander continued. "This sounded absurd to me as I heard she always traveled alone, that she did. Plus they say the gaijin was but a young boy in his teens, wearing a strange green outfit of some kind. As I said, for her to associate with such a person just sounds very absurd, that it does. Do you not agree?" he asked with a laugh. He expected to get a similar laugh or comment of some kind from the samurai, only to be surprised when none came as he simply stayed silent and looking off to the side again. In fact...he looked even more interested about THAT news than the one about the warrior in the west.

"Is that the strong warrior you were talking about? Fu-Ma no Taki?"

"You could say that," he said slowly, but in truth it was the other he spoke of. Never in his wildest dreams did he think he would ever be more interested in fighting anyone other than Taki. Or possibly even the Azure Knight.

Thinking of the Knight gave him pause. Some time after his recent...defeat (which made him internally frown at that memory), he was absentmindedly going through his travel bag when he noticed that his shard of Soul Edge he received as a reward for saving someone was no longer there. He thought perhaps he might had absentmindedly thrown it away at some point, but he was sure he would have remembered doing so. That meant someone had to have taken it from him. And since he knew no one could have done so since he regained consciousness, there was only one person who could have taken it.

'And if he is indeed with Taki...then she too must have heard this latest rumor of the Azure Knight. Or at least will soon enough...and with that being the case, there is no doubt they would follow up on this rumor eventually. And that means...'

Taking one last drink of his sake, he hurriedly wiped his mouth before grabbing his travel bag and heading for the exit with a quick bow. "My thanks for your hospitality, commander. It was a rather thrilling battle, indeed. And now that my services are no longer required here, I shall take my leave," he said before quickly heading out, ignoring the cries of the commander and other soldiers he passed by along the way.

He ran straight to a nearby port, a little a ways from the fleet. He looked at the various ships that were docked before finding a promising one. "You there!" he shouted to the surprised boatman before shoving his bag of money to him before he could speak. "Take me to the west! Now! As far as you can to Europe!"

The confused boatman looked between the bag and the samurai a bit, trying to understand his request before deciding to check its contents. His eyes suddenly widened at the large amount of money he saw in his hands. And this man wanted him to take him to Europe for it? He had to admit it would be a very long journey, and ferrying someone that far wasn't exactly what he had planned. It would take half a year or so just to make the round trip. But looking at the money, he slowly decided it would very well be worth it. Heck, he might just retire when all is said and done with the amount of money he was given!

With that in mind, he tightened the bag of money and started getting ready. "Hai, samurai-san. Most glad to be of service. Most glad indeed," he said with another gleeful look at _his_ bag of money before starting to set sail, which Mitsurugi approved with a nod, a small grin on his face as he watched the boatman get things ready.

'I'm coming for you, boy. And you too, Taki! And once I've settled the score with both of you, you're next Nightmare!'

* * *

 **A/N: Annnd, done. Have to admit, not my best chapter. Writing the interaction between Taki, Link, Takeda and Diamond Flash was far more difficult than I expected, and still not sure if I wrote it the way I want it.**

 **The name Takeda is from the founder of the Shirai Ryu from Mortal Kombat, where former Lin Kuei assassin Takeda defected from the clan to form his own clan in Japan. Physically, I tried to depict him as Hanzo Hasashi/Scorpion looked in MK 11 but a little older. However, this is NOT part crossover with Mortal Kombat in any way, and I just borrowed a few elements from the series, so don't fret about that.**

 **"Diamond Flash" was the name of a horse a classmate of mine showed one time in grade school with a relative of hers as part of Show and Tell. I don't know if the horse ever raced or anything, but the name sounded cool and just stuck with me.**

 **Inspecting a horse's teeth helps determine a horse's age, and so it was a common way to inspect horses. At some point, the phrase of "not looking a gift horse in the mouth" originated from lower class people that checked a horse's teeth. Simply getting a horse as a gift, which was very expensive in those days, should be enough to please anyone with little money, and so they thought such people that checked the horse's mouth for deficiencies was usually considered to be rude, have trust issues, and should just be grateful at getting a horse in the first place.**

 **The apple scene was one I borrowed from the first and third episodes of Samurai Jack, an animated cartoon show from Cartoon Network where the titular character does the same thing to befriend a couple horses.**

 **Taki asking to spread the rumor as described was ultimately intended to send a message to Chie that she met with Link and are now traveling together. If the Fu-Ma did indeed get delayed in pursuing them, so much the better, so hopefully I was able to clear that up if there were any questions or confusion on that.**

 **Edo was the old name for what is now called Tokyo, hence why I used that name for it, and it is much farther to the East than Osaka, and so that part was added to help fool the remaining Fu-Ma as to where Taki and Link currently were.**

 **A keen eye will have noticed that the feat I described for Mitsurugi was based on the introduction animation for Soul Calibur II. Hope it was accurate in my description of it.**

 **Sorry for the lack of action as of late. I promise things will pick up next chapter considerably. For now, the two have finally managed to cast off and Taki intends to use the 2-3 months time to train with Link and prepare them for their journey in Europe. But a certain samurai has correctly deduced where the two are headed and intends to have his rematch with Link** **—** **and by extension, Taki.**

 **Next chapter, Link vs Taki—Round 2. Who will win!?**

 **Find out next time!**

 **For now, this is Agent Ghost-Writer 000 signing off.**


	16. Chapter 16 - Journey to the West II

**A/N: ...Meh, I got nothing. Let's just go straight to the story, shall we?**

 **.**

This is a sentence. - Narration. No character speaking or thinking.

"This is a sentence." - Character speaking out loud.

'This is a sentence.' - Character speaking in his/her head.

This _is_ a sentence. - Emphasis placed on the italic word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

This IS a sentence. - Same as with the single italic, just a variation of expressing the emphasis.

 _This is a sentence. -_ All italics means the event is happening in a dream or flashback of which I would give a quick note prior saying a dream or flashback is occurring.

 _This_ is _a sentence_. - During a dream or flashback, emphasis placed in the normal text word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

 **.**

 **I do not own The Legend of Zelda or Soul Calibur.**

* * *

 **Chapter 16 - Journey to the West II**

"Come on, Taki! I have 50 Ryo riding on you!"

"Go, Link! You got her this time!"

"Whoa! Nice move!"

"Kami, who thought this kid could go toe to toe with Fu-Ma no Taki?"

These were but a few comments made by the crew as they watched Link and Taki in their latest spar.

It had been nearly two and half months since they set sail, and Taki made it a point to spend each day training with Link. Partially to get a better feel of just what he could do, partially to keep her own skills sharp, and partially because...there just wasn't much else to do on the ship. Some of the training merely involved physical workouts such as push-ups, sit-ups, or weight-lifting with whatever they could find or sometimes assisting the crew in some of the more physical labors around the ship. Other times Taki would educate Link on what she knew of the lands, cultures, languages, and so forth for their journey through Europe.

Or in times like this, just flat out sparring.

The whole crew, captain included, were amazed at how Link could hold his own against the renowned Fu-Ma no Taki. So much so that after Link managed to win an all out spar less than a week in, the crew started regularly placing bets on who would win every time they would spar—even the captain got involved in betting at one point. To again avoid unwanted questions, neither Link nor Taki would be allowed to use their magic in any way, which included use of Link's Sheikah Scroll or Taki's ki, and instead just use pure skill.

This slight handicap would allow Taki to gain a bit of an edge in terms of victories, particularly in pure unarmed combat—though she would not admit it out loud, if there were no restrictions in their spars, she would find it very hard pressed to win. Heck, she found it hard pressed to win now, though she did win the last two spars—albeit barely. And that was after Link won three of the five before then.

When not training, the crew showed particular appreciation to Link playing his ocarina, playing a mix of tunes he knew as well as new ones taught to him—"sea shanties" as they called them—by other music-playing crew members. Many a crew would clap their hands to the upbeat tunes played and found themselves more motivated in their work as well, much to the captain's delight, and also helped the days go by faster.

They were now but a few day's worth from their destination, and Taki made the suggestion to have one last all out spar and use the remaining days to rest. As such, the crew were anxiously watching to see who would win this last match on their ship. They had been sparring for well over half an hour now, almost 45 minutes as Link parried a pair of swings and countered with a thrust. Taki dodged to the side, only to have to duck under a jumping kick to the head before locking swords with Link.

The two pushed hard against the other for a bit before they both stepped back to gain a little breathing room as they analyzed their next move. The two were breathing rather heavily as sweat was easily visible on their faces. Taki had a few scratches on her sides as well as a few bruises beneath her outfit from a few blows Link managed to land on her. Link had a couple scratches on his face, one on his thigh, and a bruise on his left cheek from a hard kick from Taki.

Taki was in her standard red outfit while Link chose to wear a black tunic and cap **(A/N: Think Young Link's black outfit from SSB: Melee. Yes, I borrowed an outfit from a different game. Sue me :P)**. They soon started circling each other, looking for any sort of opening to exploit. After about a minute of circling and analyzing, Taki then made her move.

She charged at Link while throwing a pair of shuriken at him who quickly blocked with his shield. Seeing this, Taki rolled to the ground and gave a pair of upside-down spin kicks. The force of the blows, though blocked, made Link back up slightly and forced to turn to the side a bit, just as she planned. She quickly flipped to her feet and kept moving forward while spinning in a 360 degree turn. Link recovered enough to see Taki charging and swung at her out of instinct. Taki parried it out of the way and connected with a jumping double-kick to the head and chest area, knocking him down and skidding him back ten feet.

Link shook his head at the move, only to quickly roll to the side to avoid a jumping downward thrust from Taki, narrowly avoiding being gashed in the stomach but was prevented from immediately betting back to his feet as Taki kept up the offensive. He awkwardly fended off a pair of follow-up swings while on his back, then got a pair of kicks to the side from Taki as she stood over him. Link tried to give a footsweep and try to get back to his feet, but Taki successfully fended off his moves and kept him on his back.

"Come on, Link! You can do it!"

"Now you got him, Taki!"

"Oh, I'm gonna get a good payday today. Keep nailing him, Taki!"

"Do something, Link!"

'Easier said than done,' Link thought, as he struggled with Taki's kicks. He then saw Taki deliver a high axe kick and drilled it down towards him. This time, Link took a different approach and dodged by rolling TOWARDS Taki. Then rather try using another foot-sweep, he surprised her by tripping her off her feet with a _hand_ -sweep, using his shield arm in such a way to make her fall forward. Taking advantage, Link then maneuvered himself to hop onto Taki's backside and try to subdue her while Taki tried to shake him off. The two rolled a bit so they were now both laying on their right sides.

The two struggled as Link tried to lower his blade towards her face and neck while keeping her down with his weight and right arm, which was draped over her upper arm area, preventing her from getting enough leverage to use her Rekki-Maru to defend or attack. Link's shield both pressing on her and being in the way to gain leverage wasn't helping matters, either. However, Link also couldn't get as much leverage as he wanted with his own blade as Taki made use of her armored gauntlet on her left arm to keep his sword from slicing her.

"Yosh! Atta boy, Link! Way to go!"

"Grrr, come on, Taki!"

"Nooo, you can't lose now, Taki! I'm not losing a fifth bet in a row!"

"Ha-ha! That's it, Link!"

"Man, I so wish I was in Link's position right now-OWW!" one of them suddenly cried after the captain whacked him in the back of the head.

"Ye had better hope Taki did not hear that, which be unlikely with her," the captain reprimanded.

Taki _did_ hear that (Link did too but was confused on why he would want to be in his position) but ignored it as she tried kicking, back-headbutting, anything to try to get free, but to no avail as Link held firm. That being said, neither was getting anywhere as Taki tried to turn her own blade towards Link while Link tried to get around her armored gauntlet and towards her neck.

Suddenly, Link got an idea and changed tactics by _dropping_ his sword entirely, much to Taki's surprise. So much so that the sudden loss of resistance to her arm shot out enough for Link to quickly grab it and maneuver it behind her back. At the same time, the slight yet sudden shift in body position allowed Link to better grip Taki's right arm and force her to drop her Rekki-Maru.

'Kuso! He deliberately disarmed himself so as to do the same to me while maneuvering me into a submission hold! Argh, clever boy!' she thought as she tried to figure a way out of this while not letting Link get her other arm behind her.

Taki was now on her stomach with Link laying over her on her right side, his legs on top of and partially wrapped around her right leg to help prevent her from getting to her feet. She struggled to try to get to her knees while Link continued adding pressure on her left arm, trying to get her to submit with his above average strength.

'Ugh, how is he so strong!?' Taki asked herself as she also was no lightweight herself when it came to muscle despite her feminine frame. And yet she found herself unable get out of his grip. Maybe Hachibei taught him _too_ well on grappling?

"You yield, Taki-sama?"

"Tch. Not even close. RHAAA!" she cried as she gave a mighty pull on her right arm. After a moment, she finally managed to get her right arm free and beneath Link's grip. She then took advantage and started elbowing Link right into his face multiple times. Because of her position, she was almost bouncing off the ground so as to elbow him, using the same arm to strike and push off the ground at the same time. He tried to grab the arm again, briefly doing so, but only for a moment before she broke loose and gave him another couple shots to the head.

The force of the blows also pushed him more upright and back a bit, causing him to lose his grip over Taki's left arm. Not giving up that easily, Link changed tactics again and quickly wrapped both his arms around Taki before she could escape, managing to grip his left hand around her waist and his right hand gripping her right front elbow while on his knees by her ( **A/N: Think similar to one of the starting positions in state or college wrestling** ).

"Whoo! Look at Link go! He's really making a move, now!"

"STILL wish I was in Link's position right now."

"I bet he's enjoying it, hehe."

'Perverts,' Taki thought as she continued trying to escape—although she did hear three good WHACKs, courtesy of the captain.

Link wasn't making it easy on her as he used his weight and position to keep her from getting up, and now she couldn't elbow him without risk of getting in a worse position with either arm. They spun around as Taki tried to roll, kick, spin, anything to gain leverage and escape. Finally, Link's smaller size and weight proved to be insufficient to keep her grounded for long as she slowly managed to get to her knees. Then after a few moments, she managed to get her left leg out and now was only on one knee.

She then turned her head slightly towards Link, who could tell he was losing his advantage as she got her left leg out. Finally, she let out a smirk at him. He only had time to briefly widen his eyes in surprise at that before she made her move.

With a loud shout, she simultaneously started standing up while stretching her right arm outward and turning to her left, allowing her to loosen his grip due to his shorter arm length. Link tried to readjust and not let her escape, but the action of her standing up forced him to take a step back to balance himself. He tried to move so as to quickly grab her and throw her via suplex, as he once heard the term, but her earlier move was enough of a distraction for her to give a spinning backhand to the face before he could—metal gauntlet first.

She quickly followed with a straight kick to the chest as Link suddenly found himself on the defensive as the battle suddenly changed to unarmed combat. He recovered enough to duck under a roundhouse kick to the head, then blocked a series of punches to his chest and head, backing up as he did. He tried to make use of his shield he still had on him, but him being out of position allowed Taki to kick and maneuver around it. She kept up the pressure as she kept attacking, keeping him backpedaling until his back suddenly hit the ship's railing.

Link was caught off guard from this, leaving him open for Taki to get in a hard kick to his side, shortly followed by a punch to the face. He managed to parry a few more strikes before finding himself in a brief arm lock.

"Always mind your surroundings, Link-san," she commented before giving a hard shove, pushing Link to the side and connecting with another hard kick to the side. Link took a few more steps back to gain some distance as he waited for Taki to attack again.

To his surprise, Taki did not follow up as expected; instead, she unsheathed her large kunai blade she had been using in place of Mekki-Maru and put it in her right hand in a reverse-grip. Link narrowed his eyes at that. He looked to see where his sword was and saw it a sizable distance behind Taki.

'Aw, horse dung! I was hoping to get her to submit before she could use that. NOW what do I do?' he thought, which just got Taki to smirk at seeing his reaction.

"Not bad, Link-san," Taki said, getting his attention. "Impressive move to deliberately disarm yourself and in turn do the same to me while still maintaining an advantage. But _now_ what will you do without your sword?"

Link just grunted as he tried to come up with a plan. Link was not used to fighting an armed opponent while he had no weapon at all. Not to say he couldn't, but facing someone as skilled as Taki just made it much harder to overcome. He still had his shield, which he held out in front of him, but there was only so much one could do with just a shield. He had to get around her somehow...

Taki, meanwhile, was now playing guard dog and moving to deliberately keep Link from getting to his sword. From her position, she could possibly run back towards their dropped weapons as well, but she knew Link was fast, possibly even faster than her. If she so much as sneaked back towards them, that risked Link being able to make a move as well and put both of them on even ground again, and so she stuck to the advantage she had now.

'Just be patient and sooner or later you'll find an opening,' she told herself as she slowly approached Link, carefully moving so as to prevent him from getting around her and making a sprint to his weapon. Link tried to fake her out, hoping to trick her and be too slow to stop him from, but to no avail as Taki held firm.

Finally, Taki got close enough to make a couple slashes that Link deflected with his shield before she gave a hard kick straight to the shield itself. Link stumbled back a bit from the move but kept his footing. He sure felt the force of the kick on his arm, though.

'She always did know how to get her kicks,' Link joked to himself. He said that one time when discussing Taki's skills with part of the crew, but they did not get the expression until Link explained it to them, which then led to them making comments _he_ didn't get about ways Taki 'got her kicks' before Taki interrupted them and showed them just how she 'got her kicks' as she heard them put it and left several bruised and injured sailors in her wake.

'Focus, Link. How do I get out of this? Ow!' he said to himself as Taki delivered another hard right kick to his arm before retreating back to keep Link from his sword. His eyes suddenly widened before he quickly closed the distance between them and forced her to engage him again.

Taki inwardly frowned at that, as she was just about to make move to get to their swords while she had a sizeable lead, but Link realized what she was looking to do at the last second and prevented it. Once again, her slashes were either dodged or parried with the shield while yet another hard kick got him in the arm.

He noticed she had been doing that more often lately, and his arm was starting to feel the pressure from it all. 'Hmm, so she's trying to wear down my shield arm, maybe force me to take it off or just weaken it enough to allow for follow up strikes. Not bad, but not good enough, Taki-chan.'

Seeing her strategy, he then made a move by going forward slightly this time as Taki made another slash with her kunai, then gave a left kick to her shoulder that connected but only lightly. It wasn't much, but he thought with his durability, he could outlast her in this game.

They continued trading blows like this, neither getting a major hit in as Taki slowly maneuvered them both a considerable distance from the swords. Link flinched a bit as the multiple straight kicks to Link's shield arm were unfortunately starting to take its toll. Finally, Link saw an opening when Taki overextended herself with one of her kicks and took advantage by charging shield first into her gut, pushing her back as he kept running forward.

"Watch out!" a crewmember yelled as they saw the pair heading in their direction, prompting them to get out of their way. Those still at a safe distance, though continued cheering them on.

"Yosh! That's it Link! Keep it up!"

"Uh, oh! Not good!"

"Get out of there, Taki!"

"Ha, ha! Let's see you get out of THIS one, Taki!"

Their trajectory was taking them at an angle towards the railing at a point not far from their dropped weapons. Just a few feet before they got there, Link tried to give a hard shove and push Taki back and then go for his sword. Just as he did, though, Link's shield started slipping to the side, preventing him from making as hard of a push as he wanted. Taki took advantage by grabbing Link's tunic and shove him to the side, making Link keep moving forward alongside the railing and away from his target. Link managed to stay on his feet, but the advantage was gone as he turned to face Taki, who stepped back into a defensive position.

"Oh, so close!"

"What a move!"

"Nice one, Taki!"

"Unbelievable!"

The sailors' comments mirrored the fighters' feelings as Taki had a bit of a relieved look on her face while Link couldn't help but frown as he hit the railing with his fist in frustration.

'Horse dung! I had her, too!'

'(Phew), that was close. Had his shield not slipped off to the side, he very well may had turned the tables on me and make a move for his sword...and possibly grab mine as well.'

Though Link got closer to his sword, he still found Taki was in between him and his sword as he stood near the railing, putting him back at square one. To make matters worse, he was out of the shuriken and kunai he kept on him, limiting his options even more. The two were now breathing very heavily, their clothes now drenched in sweat from all the fighting.

'I'm definitely going to need a bath after this,' Taki thought as she watched Link move closer to the center of the ship and away from the railing while Taki kept herself in between him and his weapon while slowly advancing towards him.

Taki gave a series of slashes that bounced across Link's shield while giving various kicks like before. However, Link was now getting the hang of her strategy and prevented her from getting more hits in while he was connecting a little more. They traded blows like this for a bit with neither one gaining any significant hits, but Link was getting in more while fewer of her hits were connecting.

'Grrr, that shield is very annoying. And what's it made out of, anyway? I've struck it multiple times and I STILL don't see a single scratch on it!' she thought as another strike was parried by his shield. 'There's got to be someway to get around it, but how?'

She racked her brain as the two crossed their blade and shield. The two were now pushing hard against each other, both leaning their shoulders and arms into each other. Despite their exhaustion, Link still had the upper hand in physical strength and durability as he started winning their little 'contest' when suddenly Taki's eyes widened as an idea came to mind, a small yet dangerous smirk appearing on her face.

Link knew that wasn't a good sign. Taki rarely smirked or smiled in battle—or in general, for that matter—and so whenever she did, that usually meant bad news for Link. As soon as he saw it, he gave a hard shove to push her back and prepare himself for what may come.

Taki did not disappoint as she changed from a reverse-grip to a normal grip with her kunai and gave a cross slash to her left, followed by a downward cross slash to her right which both bounced off of Link's shield and then a kick with her left to his shoulder. Link saw her overextend it again and tried to charge forward with his shield, but Taki anticipated this move as she suddenly took a brief hop back and gave a hard right and upward spin kick that knocked his shield far off to the side while he was still slightly moving forward, leaving him wide open.

Using her momentum, Taki kept spinning to her left after the kick and stepped forward with a reverse-thrust with her kunai—that she had quickly shifted into her _left_ hand. This surprise move forced Link to dodge to the side, barely avoiding getting skewered in the face.

'Now!'

Taki kept up her spinning momentum and stepped inside of Link's arm-reach and gave a hard chop to his shield arm right at the elbow, making him let out a yelp in pain. Immediately upon making contact, Taki then took a page out of Link's book and deliberately _dropped_ her kunai in her left hand before grabbing Link's shield with both arms, trying to pry it off of him.

Link's eyes widened at what she was doing and struggled to keep it on while trying to shove her aside, but Taki surprised him with that earlier chop just enough to make him loosen his hold on the shield's Argive grip, allowing her to yank it off of his arm entirely after a few good pulls.

"Hey! That's mine!" Link shouted in response before charging forward into another tackle while she was still off balance from pulling it off, pushing her back a bit before giving her several hard punches to Taki's now exposed midsection. "Give it back!" he shouted as he punched her.

Just before she could retaliate, he then gave another hard shove and pushed her back several feet, almost knocking her down while spinning her almost 180 degrees in the process. He saw her on one knee while using an arm for support, likely due to exhaustion. Seeing her position, he got an idea as he ran towards her. Then just as he got close, he prepared to make a hop so as to jump on top of her as a stepping stool and make his move-

PLANG! PLANG!

...Only to suddenly feel a pair of hard smacks nail him across the head just before he made the first leap. Something hard and metal.

The captain and crew collectively flinched, with some letting out an "oooh" at Link getting hit in the face with his own shield.

While taking Link's hard punches, Taki still had a hold on Link's shield. Acting quickly, she (partially) faked being overly exhausted after he pushed her so as to draw him in, and when she heard Link approaching her, she used it. Although she didn't have it gripped by the handles, she was able to hold it at the edges and give basically a pair of hard metal slaps to the face as he approached.

The hard and surprising blows knocked him for a loop, greatly disoriented him. And yet somehow, he managed to stay on his feet, albeit barely and was wobbling a bit. Link shook his head, trying to gain his bearings, and opened his eyes just in time to see Taki coming after him again.

"Here, take it!" Taki replied.

He instinctively raised his arms in an 'x' as if to deflect the blow away from him, but Taki surprised him by faking going high and instead going low. And in the short time Link was disoriented, Taki had put the shield over her own right arm and gave him a strong uppercut to the gut with it, drawing even louder "ooohs" from the crowd.

Link keeled over from the blow, hugging his arms over where he was hit and let out a cough from getting the wind knocked out of him. Taking advantage, it was now _Taki_ who jumped on top of _Link_ in his bent position, briefly doing a handstand on Link's shoulders so she was straight up in the air.

"Now, take THIS!" she shouted after letting gravity take over for her legs, where she then gave a hard double-kick straight into Link's lower back. The impact knocked Link hard to the ground and onto his already damaged stomach.

Link groaned in pain. That last set of attacks really did a number on him, the last one in particular as he coughed again from the pain. As he slowly tried to get up, through his blurry vision he noticed a familiar sword laying but a couple feet from him.

'Taki's Rekki-Maru!'

He hurriedly moved to grab it, fighting through the pain as he did. But just as he stretched his arm out to grab it, he felt a weight suddenly crash on top of him, knocking the wind out of him again. He tried to shake her off and reach for her sword, until he felt another familiar sword now poised against his throat.

His own sword...in Taki's hand.

"NOT this time," Taki declared as she kept the blade at his throat.

Everyone suddenly became silent. So silent, the waves and light wind seemed to echo loudly in the air until Taki spoke once again. "You fought well, Link-san, but it's over, now. There's no escape...You yield?"

Link did not answer as the two stayed still, breathing heavily from a long and grueling battle. Link tried to think of a way out of this, his brain racking for a solution. ANYTHING to get him out of this, but as she pressed her blade harder against his throat, he finally realized there was only just so much one could do.

"I yield," he finally said in a defeated sigh.

Taki in turn let out a sigh of relief, thankful that the fight was finally over as she slowly removed the blade from his throat, of which the crew managed to find their voices again.

"NOOOO, there goes my winnings!"

"Woo hoo! Now, THAT was a good fight! What a match!"

"YOSH! I FINALLY WON A BET!"

"Kuso…"

Taki slowly stood to one knee, exhausted at being pushed to her physical limits for close to an hour. As she slowly stood to her feet, she heard a groan and a cough by her as she saw Link bent over on his knees, holding his midsection.

'That last punch likely did a number on him. Hopefully I did not rupture any organs in the process,' she thought as she offered a hand to him.

"(Ugh) Arigato. Nice moves, by the way," he said with a pained smile as he took the hand and was pulled up, still clutching his stomach while Taki gave a shoulder for support.

"Likewise. Those were very impressive strategies you used."

"Hehe, I must have since you ended up using one of them. Copy cat," he teased with a laugh. He had to admit, he didn't see that coming, her dropping her kunai so as to disarm him of his shield.

"Hmph. I am a 'copy cat,' huh?" she replied, unfamiliar with the expression but quickly got its meaning. "Says the one who copied my stance at the start of this fight. And the monkey flip technique later on. AND Hachibei-sama's arm grapple technique. What was that expression you used once? 'What goes around comes around?'"

Link just gave a bit of a sheepish look before shrugging. "Hehe, true...but I guess that means YOU'RE the apprentice now, huh?"

Taki couldn't help but blink at that remark. "I'M the apprentice now? And just what makes you say that?"

"Well (cough), you learned that strategy from me, right? Therefore, that makes you the apprentice then, doesn't it? And _I_ am the master," he said with a laugh and his usual eyes-closed smile, also getting a few chuckles from the crew while Taki just gave him a wry look.

"Hmph. If you're the 'master', how is it you have lost three times in a row now?"

Link just gave a shrug before replying. "Well (cough), I guess I'm just that good of a teacher. You learned well, Taki-san. Well done," he said in mock teacher-student fashion.

All of the sailors suddenly bursted out laughing at Link's joke. Seriously, this kid was just so entertaining. And the annoyed look from Taki just made it even funnier to them—especially with her eye twitching like that. He should sail with them more often!

At that, Taki stopped supporting him up, where Link promptly fell face first onto the ship's deck (and getting a few more laughs from the crew). Despite this, he couldn't help but laugh at it all as well. And despite her annoyed look, Link could see the barest of smirks of amusement still flash across her face just prior to dropping him, where normally she would have just gotten annoyed and be unamused entirely. He smiled at that—it seemed he was starting to rub off on her as she started to banter a little more than when they started. And not just with cold or matter-of-fact comments either like she usually did. Maybe she was starting to lighten up...at least a little?

The captain, meanwhile, had watched their exchange with a raised eyebrow. He had known Taki for a while now, and he had never seen her show any level of compassion towards anyone... Or at least not to the extent shown here. Sure she mentioned the kid had helped her escape from the Fu-Ma and she took him in as her apprentice as thanks, but he was sure she was leaving something out. The fact the kid could fight as well as he did brought up further suspicion that he was more than just an "apprentice" as she claimed; however, she was evasive in explaining any further, no matter how hard he tried, and the "apprentice" wasn't saying any more either, so he finally gave up. He then turned to see his crew passing bets from that last fight and giving comments on the fight.

"Alright, fun time be over. Back to work, all of ye!" he ordered, some groaning at the order as well as from losing a bet while others just smiled and pocketed their winnings.

* * *

(Elsewhere - Cairo, Egypt)

"Well, that was a waste. What do we do now?" a young man of eighteen asked his younger companion.

"I know not. But the wind will guide us. Of that, I am sure," a young girl of fifteen, near sixteen replied.

They had just left a destroyed temple of millennia past to find some sort of clue to Soul Edge, only to get vague rumors and stories from the interpretations by their guide, much to the frustration of one.

"Well, it feels like the wind blew us off course in sending us here. We travel halfway around the world trying to find something on Soul Edge, only to get aching knees from all this walking across the continents, dry throats from this intense heat, and enough sand to last several lifetimes. All just for some babbling of some 'Hero King' and his son whom he apparently killed because his son got jealous of his power and wanted it for himself, and so he took his father's sword that was _supposedly_ Soul Edge in order to do it, only for BOTH of them AND the sword to just disappear...along with more sand, sand, and even more sand. And they claim those Israelites survived FORTY YEARS wandering this desert thousands of years ago? Tch. I doubt they lasted forty _days_."

The girl ignored him as he continued complaining of their current travel conditions and relative lack of progress. While she was a bit exhausted herself, she was not one to voice complaint over it. Though, she had to admit it would be nice to get away from the desert lands for awhile. And while her friend was disappointed at not having any solid lead on Soul Edge's current whereabouts, she found the stories a little more insightful and felt sympathy for the Hero King. Assuming the sword the son stole was indeed Soul Edge, it likely corrupted him, forcing a father to kill his own son.

'It must have agonized him at having to have committed such a deed. Likely why it was rumored he disappeared after that, never to be heard from again...' she thought sadly. Could others suffering from Soul Edge also be suffering a similar fate? Given the conflicts they had heard in their travels related to Soul Edge, it did not sound unlikely. Hearing them all just strengthened her resolve to deliver the demonic power to its rightful place. She said a silent prayer to herself, praying those suffering from its evil could find peace once more.

As they left the city limits, she suddenly stopped and gasped as a sharp gust of wind suddenly blew against them.

"What is it? What's wrong?" he asked at seeing his friend freeze in place like that.

She did not immediately reply, instead closing her eyes and hugged herself a bit at what she felt, her breathing becoming more labored and her legs suddenly becoming weak. At first it was a violent, ominous feeling as the wind blew against them, her body shivering as if she suddenly became cold.

Then just as suddenly...the feeling stopped. Replaced by a gentle, beautiful calm that started filling her body with warmth and returning her strength. She soon spread her arms wide as if trying to take it in as much as she could, almost losing herself into its feeling as she took in a deep breath.

"Talim? You alright?"

Hearing her friend brought her back to reality as she slowly opened her eyes, letting out a deep breath as the wind went back to normal. "I felt...a most unusual feeling. As if an ominous force was in the air. Something...dark. Very sinister. Perhaps...evil. As if a dark presence had made itself known and was now on the move. It felt so...terrifying," she replied, trying to explain it as best she could.

"But then...it was suddenly accompanied by a most angelic breeze...as if it was removing, almost guiding the dark presence from the air before they both faded away. It felt so...beautiful," she said almost wistfully at the end.

"So...what does it mean?" her friend asked, giving her a strange look. He knew of her unusual connection to the wind—didn't mean he always understood what the wind was telling her. Though, he hadn't seen her look that peaceful since she helped cleanse that one boy of that evil energy within him back in her village.

"I am...not certain, but...I now feel a whispering to the north. A faint...mysterious whispering in the wind. As if it is looking to stay hidden."

The young man tilted his head in interest. Mysterious? And trying to stay hidden? AND out of the desert? Sounded good to him. "Well, what are we standing in this giant sandpit for? North it is, then! Come on!" he urged as he ran forward, drawing a cheerful giggle from the girl. He always did have a very upbeat attitude...mostly. She paused as she tried to understand what the wind was telling her.

The darkness she felt...could it be Soul Edge? And what about the beautiful wind she felt after that? If the dark wind was Soul Edge, then what was the other, lighter wind? Then she remembered the vision she had been seeing ever since she helped that boy...Could it be-?

"Hey! You coming, Talim or what?"

Her thoughts were interrupted by her friend's shout. Shaking her head, she decided to worry about it later. "I'm coming, Yun-Seong! Wait for me!"

* * *

 **A/N: Whew, finally done.**

 **I decided to have Link lose this last bought on the ship just to show he wasn't invincible. Again, he did not have access to all his inventory during his fights with Taki, and so I added the part where Taki had an edge in victories but still felt a little doubt of her winning should they fight with no restrictions.**

 **I know Link didn't have a black outfit in SC, but I wanted him to have multiple outfits besides the usual three from OOT and I'm still debating of him having the magenta one from SCII in the future. At some point, I will introduce a new outfit of his, but only at an appropriate time. And whether each outfit outside of the Kokiri Tunic will have a special ability, I haven't decided yet.**

 **The monkey flip I mentioned earlier happened earlier in the fight but was not described, and is basically Noob Saibot's throw from Mortal Kombat: Deception & Armageddon. Can you guess whose throw move Taki used? :)**

 **And, yep! They'll finally meet some more SC characters in the next chapter. What will happen? How will they meet?**

 **Find out next time!**

 **For now, this is Agent Ghost-Writer 000 signing off.**


	17. Chapter 17 - Istanbul I

**A/N: Wow! Thanks so much for the reviews! Glad to see so many enjoying the story. And thanks for the constructive criticism as opposed to outright flaming on the parts that are weak. Again, first time writing a story, certainly of this length anyway. I think the last time I wrote a story of any kind was like in grade school and mainly wrote like reports and presentations since then, so still a bit of a transition as you could likely tell.**

 **Just a quick FYI, I made a very minor addition in the last chapter at the end where Talim is thinking to herself. I added a part of how the wind similar to the wind she felt several months ago...aka, Link's arrival. Like I said, just a minor addition but one I felt important to add.**

 **Things will be picking up and start to thicken a bit in the next few chapters. But rather than spoil anything further, I'll just cut to the story :)**

 **.**

This is a sentence. - Narration. No character speaking or thinking.

"This is a sentence." - Character speaking out loud.

'This is a sentence.' - Character speaking in his/her head.

"(This is a sentence.)" - Character speaking out loud but in a language unfamiliar to the characters (and I was too lazy to research the correct wording).

This _is_ a sentence. - Emphasis placed on the italic word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

This IS a sentence. - Same as with the single italic, just a variation of expressing the emphasis.

 _This is a sentence. -_ All italics means the event is happening in a dream or flashback of which I would give a quick note prior saying a dream or flashback is occurring.

 _This_ is _a sentence_. - During a dream or flashback, emphasis placed in the normal text word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

 **.**

 **I do not own The Legend of Zelda or Soul Calibur.**

* * *

 **Chapter 17 - Istanbul I**

(Timeskip - A Little Under Two Weeks Later)

They arrived at their destination four days after their spar at the port city of Bandar Bushehr of Persia **(A/N: Present-day** **Iran)**.

Link and Taki bid farewell to the captain and crew and thanked them for taking them with them, who in turn thanked them for an enjoyable and very entertaining trip. They then spent the next several days trekking through the desert-filled lands, avoiding as much contact as possible.

Along the way, they obtained a couple camels to trek across the desert from a vendor (using a few of Link's rupees, naturally). While this was not the first time Taki had ridden a camel, Link found it a much different experience riding a camel versus a horse. The hump took a bit to get used to, and he found that camels didn't run as fast as horses. Or as long, as they moved at a steady walking or jogging pace most of the way instead of running. Still, it beat having to travel the whole way on foot, and camels seemed to be able to take long walks all day and need little water from what Taki told him.

It also appeared Link was not quite as connected with camels as he was with horses. As he tried talking to one that a vendor was selling, the camel very literally spit in his face...just as the vendor tried to warn him about that fact. It took all of Taki's self control to not let out a laugh right then and there, and even though he couldn't see it, he knew she was smiling beneath her mask and merely turned away when he looked at her, trying to act nonchalant about it.

Karma was just sweet, wasn't it?

After that little...incident, they eventually managed to set forth a good pace towards Europe. Per Taki's suggestion, they planned on traveling all the way through Turkey to its capital, Constantinople, which some also called Istanbul. They only minor issue they faced along the way was when a group of thieves stumbled upon them in the middle of the desert.

They wore masks wrapped around their heads and faces so only the eyes were visible, wore fingerless gloves on their otherwise bare arms, green pants with a sash around the left thigh, light brown boots, and leather armor of some kind on their chests with a red sash wrapped around their necks. They also wielded a sizable longsword with a curved edge and a part that stuck out near the tip opposite of the edge. They were ten in number, but the two made relatively short work of them with their superior skills and teamwork and continued on.

They eventually exited the desert near the Turkey/Syrian border, where they stopped using their camels and found another vendor to give them to in exchange for local currency—with Link getting spit in the face again as he thanked the camel for the trip, much to Taki's continued amusement.

From there, they continued on foot through Turkey. Partially so as to get used to long walking on their journey. Partially because they likely wouldn't be able to find another place that accepted camels. And partially because...they were getting very saddle-sore from riding camels all day. It didn't matter how comfy they tried to make the saddles, it was something neither wanted to have to do again (or get spit in the face again, in Link's case).

The trip on foot wasn't quite as long as expected, as it was turned into a sort of training exercise on how long and how fast they could run each day.

Or as Link simply called it, racing.

"Last one to town is a rotten egg!" Link would often shout before taking off.

Taki was not one to play such childish games, and yet she found it strangely enjoyable in treating her training in such a way. Was that how Link approached his prior training? And how his levels of endurance seemed to never end? Seriously, how was it someone almost always had difficulty waking up yet never seemed to tire when running over two hours straight? She was sure they ran 25 miles easy in that time, and Link STILL wasn't that winded. Granted, she wasn't either, but the fact anyone could keep up with her outside of the Fu-Ma was nothing short of impressive.

So determined was she in testing their limits that at one point she suggested they spend a whole day just running to see who could last the longest. Which in Link's mind meant she was saying, "Hey, let's race. First one to collapse in exhaustion, loses."

And wouldn't you know it?

Taki ultimately gave in first after traveling a distance of nearly 100 miles in a span of roughly ten hours. Granted, they did not run at all times in those ten hours, but Link looked like he could still last a couple more hours when Taki collapsed. 'He's not human...and given his origin, there is actually some truth to that. Just what is he!?' she thought to herself while Link just gave another unnerving smile in response.

Of course, what she didn't know was that Link had his Goron Tunic on at the time and didn't tell her how it let him survive in heated environments with ease, giving him a significant advantage. Even then, Link would likely have won. Heck, he was on the move almost nonstop on multiple occasions during his incident in Termina, sometimes going an entire day at times constantly on the move without using any time-altering melodies (which he was slightly bummed about not being able to use them in this world).

While still a bit miffed at Link and his seemingly never-ending stamina, she secretly enjoyed their little racing. She found herself constantly challenged and now had a bit of a measuring stick to truly see how good she was. Maybe Link was rubbing off on her more than she thought? Regardless, they eventually made it to Istanbul in record time...after a good couple days' rest, change, and signature Turkish bath from the running, of course.

'Actually, were there records for such feats?' Taki asked herself after Link brought it up once. Were there people in the world that kept track of such feats despite being of otherwise pointless accomplishments? At first it sounded silly to her for people to write down records for literally ANYTHING and EVERYTHING. But then again...how would one know if someone was truly the best in the world at something...regardless of how silly it might be?

She filed that away for later discussion before they eventually arrived at the bustling town. By now, it was early April and a rather nice spring day as they saw people go about their business. By this point, Taki had made the option of having the hood off, feeling it would make them look less suspicious. Link was alright with that and even left his cloak unbuttoned save for the one around his neck while Taki kept hers buttoned to hide her blade by her hip.

Link was back to his standard Kokiri tunic while Taki was now in an ivory outfit with gold trimmings that went down to her upper thighs. She wore armored shins as usual but now wore black, lightly armored leggings from her mid-thighs down to her feet, leaving her upper-thighs bare with a very small opening at the knees as well. Her arms had similar black and light armor all the way up to her fingers, but now she also had armored plates from the shoulders all the way to the wrists. Finally, her hair went from a ponytail to two bangs over the sides of her face, held in place with a brown forehead protector ( **A/N: Her 2P outfit from SCII** ).

For Link, this was by far the biggest town he had ever been in. How many people lived here? Over 100,000? Even Hyrule Castle Town wasn't NEARLY this big or have that many people! He couldn't help but be in awe as he looked all around them.

"Wow..."

"First time in a city?" Taki asked, getting his attention.

"Well, no, but...not one as big as _this_. It's very...I don't know how to describe it, but it's very pretty...and large. Where would we even want to start looking?"

"A good question. I have not been here in four years, so I am not sure what has changed since then. Though I must admit, last time I was here, a war was happening in these lands, but based on the people's behavior now, it appears the war is now over. Possibly in their favor."

Link frowned a bit at the war part. He might be a warrior and fighter himself, but he did so to help people, not conquer them. And even then, he preferred to use as little violence as possible in settling disputes. "At least maybe they'll be a little friendlier...hopefully."

"Indeed. For now, stay close to me and leave the talking to me. Understand?"

"Right," Link nodded.

They spent the next few hours asking around and listening to gossip, trying to find any leads on Soul Edge. On the streets, at taverns and restaurants, anywhere where info and gossip could likely be obtained and heard. Some could not understand them or otherwise chose not to help them when asked due to being foreigners. They did learn what Taki suspected regarding the war from those that did help them. A treaty was signed just last year, ending a 12-year war in which the Ottoman Empire gained a significant amount of territory, and with the war ended, the economy was able to start recovering.

'Now if we could just find something on Soul Edge, maybe we'll help contribute to its recovery,' Taki thought as she was getting somewhat frustrated at the lack of progress.

Link stayed mostly quiet throughout the ordeal and simply observed everything he could see as they walked around the town. The people, their outfits, buildings, everything. While Taki said to look and sense for anything related to Soul Edge, he also did so out of curiosity in learning the local culture. He could tell Taki was a little frustrated at getting no info on Soul Edge as of yet, though she did say they shouldn't necessarily expect to get results within a few hours or possibly even a few days. It took time and patience in gathering intelligence, she said, and as tedious as it might be, it was a necessary action to take so as to not wander aimlessly and waste time. Or get killed, for that matter.

'Still, one would think rumors of recent Soul Edge activity would be a popular subject in these lands or in a city of this size, regardless if they had dealings with the blade or not.'

It was then Link noticed Taki's demeanor had suddenly changed. It was subtle, but through her teachings, he noticed she looked slightly more tense in her step and they were starting to walk in places they had already been to before. "Something wrong, Taki-chan?"

"We are being followed," she stated after turning a corner. "For the past ten minutes. I was not sure at first, but now I am certain." Link now had a serious look on his face as they kept walking. "Two hooded figures. Covered head to toe. Concealed weapons for both of them, though one appears to have two smaller weapons as opposed to one large one."

"You think they're some of the thieves we met earlier?"

"Hmm...given how far and how fast we traveled since encountering them, not likely. But not impossible either. Though, how they would have followed us or known where we were headed, I could not say. However, I can definitely feel shards of Soul Edge with them."

"I see...How should we handle them, then?"

Taki thought about it as they moved through a crowded street before stopping by a vendor, pretending to be interested in their merchandise while secretly analyzing her surroundings. Something didn't feel right...and in more ways than one. She thought she felt something strange in the air, but only for a moment. And then not long after that, she found they were being followed, trying to keep their distance as they did.

'I smell a trap. But whether they are the same thieves from before or someone else entirely, I am not sure. Hmm...how to approach this?' she thought as she held up a piece of jewelry. 'Perhaps we can spring _their_ trap while laying a trap of our own?...Yes, I think that can work. Now how could we best do this?'

They moved on from the vendor and continued walking normally as she looked at the nearby buildings, the layout of the roads, and the alleys between the buildings. Seeing the alleys gave her an idea as she guided them towards them. "When I tell you, split up in different directions. Once you are out of sight, quickly move through the alleys so as to lure your follower away from me before running towards my direction. I will do the same but will take the high ground on the rooftops and keep an eye on my follower while I wait for you. Once you find him, engage my target long enough to distract him and I will ambush him accordingly. Then we take out the other shortly afterwards once they hear the noise we make. Understood?"

Link thought it over a bit, making sure he got it. "Hai. I mean, yes," he replied. It seemed while getting back to speaking English, Link sometimes used Japanese words every now and then, such as the "chan" suffix he still used to address her.

She ignored that as they walked through the alley for a couple blocks, made a turn, then Taki gave the signal and split up at a four-way intersection. Taki turned left while Link stayed straight to another intersection. Then when he heard someone walking his way, he carefully timed it so the person would get but a quick glimpse of him turning the corner.

'So far so good,' he said to himself as he then dashed towards then next intersection, then after a couple more turns, finally turned in the direction Taki went. After running and backtracking a bit, he made one more turn where he last saw Taki, expecting to see one of the people following them as expected...

Only to find no one there.

'Hmm, did I turn too early? Or did she make a turn a little earlier? No, I remember seeing this building in Taki-chan's direction...'

He carefully yet silently ran through the nearby alleys, trying to retrace her steps and checking each corner for any sign of the follower on the ground as well as Taki amongst the rooftops. And yet he found no sign of either one of them. He found himself turning multiple corners, going over multiple pathways of the nearby area and yet still found no sign of them. Having gone through various dungeons and mazes, he was pretty good at knowing which parts he had been to in a maze and which ones he hadn't, and the fact he still didn't find either one of them bothered him greatly.

'Just where _are_ they?' The place was rather void of activity, so it wasn't like there were a lot of people to watch out for. But where was Taki and the stalker?

He was about to turn another corner when he suddenly found a large blade pushed dangerously close to his head, stopping him instantly. He blinked a little at that, surprised he didn't hear anyone coming from the other side. He quickly noted the blade was at the end of a long staff of some kind before his eyes met the hooded figure before him. There wasn't much to go on, as the person was covered in head to toe and had wrappings around the face within the cloak, leaving just the eyes visible. Was this one of the thieves?

"Uhhh, good morning!" Link said in cheerful awkwardness, trying to lighten the mood as he slowly raised his hands in a placating gesture. "Um...lovely weather, huh? You come here often?"

The figure was not amused and slowly walked forward while pushing the blade closer, in turn making Link step back with each step. "Soul Edge. What do you know about it?"

It was then Link realized this person knew English, but he couldn't place the accent as it didn't sound like a local. Regardless, he decided to play dumb. "Uh, Soul Edge? What's that?"

"Do not play games with me!" the figure shouted through a rather muffled voice, Link noticed, brandishing the weapon closer to him. "I heard your companion earlier asking about it. Anyone who _asks_ about it must therefore _know_ about it. Now tell me! What do you know about it?"

Link had a more serious look by now. It seemed things hadn't gone to plan, but he wasn't terribly worried. Taki could take care of herself. And it seemed this figure was bent on fighting him if he didn't comply. Maybe in doing so, Taki would be able to track his location and come to _him_?

"And if I refuse?"

"Then I'll just have to MAKE YOU!" he shouted and tried to skewer Link as he did, only for Link to duck down beneath the thrust. He then had to dodge several follow up thrusts and swings, leaning back heavily on one thrust before turning it into a backflip with his hands to gain some distance. He then drew his sword just in time to block an overhead slash to his head.

The two struggled as their blades stayed connected before Link pushed it off and drew his shield. He stayed on the defensive, blocking and parrying the masked figure's strikes and backing up as he did. The weapon reminded him of a naginata, but the blade was a different in shape than what he was used to. Curved, but not nearly as much, and it looked a lot thicker, too. Kind of looked like the weapons the Gerudo used, now that he thought about it.

He was then surprised by a particularly hard swing that made him stumble back as he blocked it. In the process, he then tripped over a piece of fallen brick that was laying in the alley, barely staying on his feet. The masked figure did not hesitate and charged forward with a high horizontal slash. Link parried it with his shield, only to get tripped up from a second swing to his feet from the pole of the enemy's weapon.

He landed with a hard thud onto his back. Just as he looked up, he saw a swing coming directly over him and instinctively raised his shield up to block it, doing so just in time. It hit his arm hard, but not nearly enough to damage it or make him wince. He blocked another similar strike before he managed to flip himself backwards onto his feet, avoiding another strike in the process.

The figure tried to follow, only to be surprised when trying to make another thrust, Link took a step forward and turned and grabbed his weapon beneath the blade before pulling him forward and out of position, giving a hard kick to the stomach in the process.

Link then went on the attack and followed with a series of slashes that the figure had difficulty parrying due to the very close proximity of Link and his weapon designed for more longer range. Link kept it up, rushing forward so as to keep close where the enemy could not counter or defend as easily with such a long weapon. He blocked a desperate kick from the foe with his shield, trying to gain some distance but to no avail. The foe then tried to trip Link again, but Link was ready and jumped over his swing while delivering a kick of his own to the face, stunning the foe.

Link took advantage of this and made a low shoulder charge, shield first into the stomach. He kept running after making impact, pushing him back through the alleys further before shoving the foe backwards. The force knocked him back into a somersault, but he quickly got to his feet, spinning in a circle to his left a bit as he did. The two found themselves at the edges of another four-way intersection as they faced each other again. It was then the figure noticed something was missing as he reached a hand to his face.

Or rather, HER face.

"Hey, you're a...girl!" Link exclaimed as he pointed at her in shock and surprise at this latest development. Just before the last strike, Link saw part of the wrapping around the face had come loose. Then at the same time he pushed him—uh, her—with his shield, he quickly grabbed it, and the momentum of her being pushed back caused it to unravel, which forced her to turn a bit as she got to her feet.

She had long brown-red hair tied in a ponytail with a red headband on her forehead, a couple bangs of hair protruding from the headband. He couldn't see much else other than red boots on her feet, but she looked to be several years older than him and had brown eyes. Overall, she looked very pretty, he thought.

"Grrr, so what! Got a problem with that?" she asked angrily and decided to take off her cloak to make it easier to fight, resulting in a bit of a blush from Link.

She wasn't wearing very much clothing beneath her cloak. Her top was but a red-orange material that went over her shoulders and left her stomach bare, along with most of her arms, save for fingerless gauntlets on her arms and an armband on her left arm of similar color to her top. Her legs were also bare, save for her boots also of similar color to the rest with a type of fabric beneath her boots that extended a few inches from her knees. Finally, a type of sash of similar color, with yellow and green trimmings on the side and blue trimming on the front, draped over the front and backs of her legs was all that was covering her rear and...yeah.

Link shook his head at that as he recovered from his shock, tossing aside the wrappings in his hand as he got back into his fighting stance. "Of course not. I just have a problem with someone following and attacking me and my friend over Soul Edge. Just who are you, anyway?"

The young woman did not reply immediately, instead was busy observing Link for the first time. She wasn't familiar with his accent, but his outfit looked like from somewhere in Northern Europe from what she could guess and he seemed to have rather rich golden blonde hair and blue eyes.

"I am Seong Mi-Na," she finally replied. "And you are...?" she asked as she pointed her weapon at him.

"Seong Mi-Na..." He tried to see if it sounded familiar, but none of the names matched those Taki met. It sounded very pretty, though, he thought. "I am Link. Alright, Seong Mi-Na. What do you want with Soul Edge? And who is the other person with you?"

"Hmph. _I_ asked first, so I'll ask again. What do _you_ know about Soul Edge?" she asked before blinking in confusion at something else he said. "And what do you mean 'other person with me?' What are you talking about?"

"NOW who's lying?" Link replied. "Taki said there were _two_ following us. You're here. So where's the other?"

Seong Mi-Na now had a genuinely confused look on her face as she replied. "No, seriously. I came here alone. I overheard your friend asking about Soul Edge and then started following you to see what you two knew about it. I lost you for a minute before seeing you run down into an alley. I searched around, then finally found you. Alone...wait, where's YOUR friend?" she asked on guard again upon realizing Link was not alone.

Link, however, was trying to make sense of what was going on. They were being followed...but by TWO people, not one. She said she did indeed follow him and Taki into an alley, but she was alone? Then who-

Suddenly, his ears perked up as he heard footsteps...from all sides!

"(Over here!)"

He turned all around him and saw dozens of figures surrounding them, muttering various things in an unknown language to him. Masked figures with familiar outfits and swords—the thieves from before!

"They followed me!" both Link and Seong Mi-Na shouted simultaneously, before turning to each other in confusion.

"They followed you!?" they said at the same time again, this time to each other before they found themselves back to back as they looked at the various enemies around them. Link looked above and saw there were even some on the rooftops overhead!

Link looked around as he tried to find a way out of this. There were far more than just ten of them, now. More like twenty, maybe twenty-fve of them. Just where did they came from? And where the heck was Taki? Wait...could they have gotten to her? Was she al-

"(Attack!)" one of them yelled in their native tongue before they all charged after them.

"Run!" the two again shouted at the same time, both running down a pathway that was not currently occupied by the thieves who raised their swords high as they ran after them. A select few people who were in the vicinity immediately started panicking and going indoors, huddled down or otherwise ran away in fear.

Link mentally growled in frustration. He felt he could eventually take them all out, but that would require more open space as well as using magic to do it, and he was currently with someone unaware of said magic. All of which would attract unwanted attention.

'But at this point, might not have a choice,' he thought as he tried to find a way out of this. First rule of battle, Taki said: Always maneuver yourself to the most advantageous position possible both _before_ engaging in combat and _during_ combat. 'And fighting in such enclosed quarters with dozens of foes both around me and above me along with a third party who may or may not be a foe was anything BUT advantageous.'

The alley soon took them to a "T" intersection. "This way!" They both shouted, but this time moved in opposite directions before quickly stopping upon realizing this. "No! THIS way!" they both shouted again.

"Hurry! We don't have time!" Link shouted.

"I know! That's why we should go THIS way!" she shouted back, gesturing in her direction.

They then heard more shouting and saw more thieves coming from both directions, but Link saw Seong Mi-Na's path had a closer escape route based on the thieves' position. "Alright, fine. YOUR way!" he relented as he ran in her direction.

"About time. Hurry!" she shouted as she turned again towards another alley, followed shortly by Link, then the thieves. Link looked up, trying to find a good way to get to the high ground as well as check for his friend. But as they continued running, he couldn't help but notice how they seemed to be able to cut them off they way they did. It was almost as if they were expecting them. Like they _knew_ where they were going to go.

'Almost like it was a-'

"Uh, oh," Seong Mi-Na stated after they had made a turn...into a dead end.

'Trap...' he thought ruefully.

"Not this way! Go back!" she urged as they turned around. But as they doubled back, they immediately halted as they saw the thieves now coming from all other directions, surrounding them on all sides, forcing them back into the dead end.

They stepped back towards the dead end, cautiously eyeing in front of them with weapons drawn towards the thieves as they did. Link looked up around the rooftops, seeing if there was any way they could escape from above. He saw the surrounding buildings were but two, maybe three stories high at most. But most importantly, he noticed, the thieves had not yet surrounded them from above, but they were closing in to do so and knew he had to act fast.

"Do you trust me?" Link asked as he turned towards her.

"What?" she asked as she turned towards him.

" _Do you trust me_?" he repeated more forcefully.

Seong Mi-Na wasn't sure what to make of his question. They only just met and were fighting not five minutes earlier over Soul Edge, and now he's asking to trust him? Had this been any other scenario, she would have thought him insane. But seeing the thieves approaching them with anything but friendly intent and the fact they were also after him as well let her set that aside.

"Um...Yyyyes?" she responded very hesitantly.

"Then hang on!" Link shouted before he quickly put away his weapons. Just as she was about to berate him on that, her eyes widened as he suddenly pulled a large, round object as if from nowhere before throwing it at the thieves, and...did that have a fuse in it?

"What-Hey!" she then shouted when Link wrapped an arm around her waist, turning her around towards the dead end before he suddenly pulled out a strange, yellow spear-like object and pointed it towards the rooftops. Just where the heck was he keeping that thing!? He then pressed something on it, and her eyes widened again when the tip shot out towards the roof and lodged itself into the stone.

"Hang on to me! Hurry!" Link shouted to her, moving as if for her to hold onto him. She looked back up at the chain now connecting from the roof to him, seeming to understand his plan—even if she wasn't fully how—before she gingerly wrapped her arms around him when he said for her to hurry. She had but a moment to process the awkwardness of it as, without warning, they suddenly shot towards the roof at high speeds, letting at a quick "Whaa!" as she did before suddenly hearing a very loud 'BOOM!' behind her that hurt her ears.

'What...What the heck was that!?'

But just as they had launched towards the roof, two thieves had just made a jump onto the same roof they were heading. Link's eyes widened at that and knew he had to act quickly. "Get ready!"

"Wha-AHH-HEEEEEY!" she shouted as Link used his other arm to essentially throw her in mid-air, up and over the thieves that had just gotten to the edge of the roof, who were surprised at this move...although when he threw her, he had to adjust his arm to get better leverage...which resulted in him placing a hand on her rear.

'Hopefully she won't be too mad about that,' he thought nervously.

Seong Mi-Na—after that "brief" incident—found herself flying twelve feet in the air from the rooftop, but as she passed over the surprised thieves, she quickly regained her bearings and managed to right herself in the air, making a rather graceful landing.

She then readied her weapon towards the thieves, who briefly discussed who would take who before one of them charged her. As he did, she saw the other thief slicing at the rooftop edge multiple times, as if trying to knock someone off...Link!

"Hang on, Link!" she shouted as she fought the thief coming after her. While she may not know who he was, at the very least he was trustworthy enough to fight against these pigs...though she still might have a little "talk" with him when she was done.

"I'm trying!" he shouted back as he pulled an arm back to avoid another chop.

She thrust her Zanbatou as her foe approached, who parried it a couple times as he tried to get close. Seong Mi-Na did not allow this as she kept her distance. Then she made a move so SHE was now moving forward and backing HIM up. The thief dodged and parried away her attacks, but found himself losing ground quickly. He tried to change this, but as he stepped forward, Seong Mi-na turned and thrust the blunt end of her Zanbatou into his chest, stunning him. She followed this with a spinning kick to the sternum, a second standing kick to the same place, then a powerful roundhouse to the head, knocking him off his feet and head first into the ground, knocking him out.

Link, meanwhile, was still having trouble trying to fend off his attacker. His Hookshot was still stuck in its place as he tried to hold onto the roof's edge with both hands, making it awkward a bit with one hand trying to hold both the ledge and the end of his Hookshot. This led to him alternating which arm to hold himself up with as his attacker kept swinging at him, going so far as to swing and hop a little bit to different parts of the roof railing.

Suddenly, he let out a yell as he felt a sharp pain on his empty hand as he felt it being crushed by the thief smashing his armored gauntlet on it. Seeing how he was having no luck with a sword, the thief decided to use his fists and finally started having more luck. He kept pommeling Link's hands, connecting more and more now that he could make two swings with ease as he tried to get him to drop.

Finally, the multiple hits took their toll as Link couldn't take it anymore and was forced to let go as he let out a yell...

But he did not yet fall down below as he hung onto his Hookshot, dangling a bit as he did.

He looked down, hanging precariously from his position. Link had fallen from similar heights before, but not without considerable pain, and the remaining thieves below would surround him before he could recover in time. His head shot up suddenly when he thought he sensed something. He felt it earlier, prior to entering the alley...and he thought he felt something similar back in Japan after fighting that Mitsurugi. Just what did that mean?

His thoughts were interrupted when he heard metal clanging above him. He looked up to see the thief hacking at his Hookshot with his sword. The thief was initially surprised by how Link did not fall yet, but he quickly realized the situation as he tried hacking at the strange object keeping him up. As he did, he yelled something to his fellow thieves watching below. Link couldn't understand what he said, but he did see several of them start running elsewhere from the alley. Probably to regroup and join him on the rooftops, he thought. He looked up worriedly as the swings and kicks from the thief above were slowly starting to loosen the Hookshot from the building.

Link tried to get some footing on the side of the building to allow him to throw something at him to defend himself, but to his detriment, he was hanging directly in front of a window, much to the shock of the person watching on the other side. The window being several inches indented within the building prevented Link from getting the footing he desperately needed to stabilize himself. Or counterattack by throwing his Boomerang, which he wasn't sure if he could get a good throw in with how he kept swinging.

He watched as the thief kept hammering away at his Hookshot, loosening it bit by bit. But just as he raised both arms with his sword to do a hard chop, the thief suddenly felt himself being pulled back hard before being launched over the rooftop, yelling all the way down before being silenced from the hard landing below. Well, not quite as hard as his fellow thieves remaining actually moved to catch him, successfully doing so, albeit all of them getting knocked down in the process. Still, better than seeing one of them killed, they felt.

Link let out a sigh of relief, grateful for Seong Mi-Na saving him like that. "Give me your hand!" she shouted as she extended her arm towards him. He looked up to do just that, but just as he tried to pull himself up, the Hookshot finally lost all support and came loose from the constant beating it took from the thief.

"WHAA-OOF!"

"I got you!" she cried, grabbing his arm just before he started falling. Link looked up to see Seong Mi-Na holding onto him, struggling to pull him up but was finding herself dangerously close to falling herself.

'If my feet go over the railing...we'll BOTH fall! Ugh, how is he so heavy!?' she thought as she found herself losing her footing.

Finally, Link quickly put away his Hookshot into his Sheikah Scroll, the sudden weight disappearing. Much to Seong Mi-Na's surprise as she almost lost her grip and footing from the sudden change in weight. She quickly recovered, though, and finally pulled him up enough to allow him to roll over the railing on his own power and onto his knees. The two took a few moments to catch their breaths before Seong Mi-Na spoke up.

"Are you alright?" she asked, kneeling down to his level as she did. Then as Link lifted his head towards her, they found themselves frozen as they looked into each others' eyes, their faces barely a foot apart.

'Such beautiful eyes,' she thought. She knew they were blue when she first saw him earlier, but now she saw just _how_ blue they were. It was a very deep blue, almost as deep as the ocean, she thought, finding herself getting lost in them. They stayed like that for several seconds, gazing in each others' eyes before they realized the situation and quickly straightened themselves in embarrassment.

"U-Um...thanks for saving me there," Link said hesitantly as that weird feeling came back again. Seriously, what was it with pretty girls making him feel that way?

"Yo-You're welcome. I owed you for getting us out of that hot spot earlier," she said with a little awkwardness from earlier, "So...I...guess that makes us even, then, huh?" she said with a little more cheer at the end.

Link blinked a little at that before rubbing the back of his head. "Hehe, I guess so," he replied with equal cheerfulness. This sudden cheerfulness at the situation caused both of them let out a laugh at that before they looked at each other in comfortable silence, a small smile on both their faces. It was strange. First, they were fighting each other, now they're sharing a laugh. Go figure.

"AH! SOMEONE HELP ME!"

Just as they were about to continue their conversation, their moment was cut short as they heard a sudden cry for help. They briefly looked at each other in confusion, neither of them recognizing the voice as they ran towards a different part of the rooftop where they heard it coming from.

To their surprise, they saw several more thieves surrounding and attacking what looked to be a girl who was trying to fend them off just a few buildings away. The two looked at each other, this time a determined look on both their faces as they nodded and ran towards her. They hopped from rooftop to rooftop with relative ease, inwardly surprising the other at that before they each made one last jump and each kicked a thief in the back as they landed, the impacts knocking them into two more thieves in the process.

Everyone then turned towards the two in surprise, the girl in particular doing a double-take and gasped in surprise as she looked at the boy. A beautiful wind surrounding him? A strange green outfit? And a blue sword with a heavenly glow?

'Yes! I am sure of it! It's him! The one from my visions!'

There was no mistaking it. This was the person from her visions that she had been seeing. Ever since that day in Egypt when she first felt that beautiful wind. 'Strange...I did not expect him to be so...' she trailed off as a blush started forming on her face.

"(KILL THEM! KILL THEM ALL NOW!)"

The thief's foreign cry broke her train of thought as she shook her head at that (and the blush forming on her face). The three then wordlessly fought the remaining surprised attackers as they started to get a better handle of them with the better odds. Link managed to arm-grab one, using his trick of jumping over the foe's arm and yank it down before bashing him in the head, launching him into another foe before their momentum took them off of the roof in the process.

Seong Mi-Na tripped a thief off his legs with her Zanbatou before dodging a sword thrust and then grabbed the thief's arm before slamming him down into the ground. As the first thief moved to attack her again, she thrust her blade into his thigh, distracting him before giving a hard spinning kick to the head, knocking him out.

The other girl fended off two foes at once, blocking their strikes at the same time with what appeared to be dual Elbow Blades. She managed to kick one in the chin, shortly followed by a kick to the stomach in the other with the same leg, grabbing the latter by the arm while he was bent over and pulling him downward to keep him low before rolling over his back, then with surprising strength, used her momentum to actually LIFT him up over her shoulder and smash him hard into the ground ( **A/N: Sungabb Throw from SCVI** ).

The three were surprised as they heard a yell from another one of the thieves and looked around to see even _more_ thieves running towards them from the rooftops.

"Grrr, why are there so many of you?" Seong Mi-Na asked out loud as they braced themselves for another round. But just as the first several thieves landed in front of them, they heard shouts of pain and surprise at the _back_ end of the group of thieves, making all three of them widen their eyes in recognition at whom they saw.

"Taki!"

"Yun-seong! Huh?" The girls said as they looked at each other in confusion, both of them saying the same name at the same time. "How do _you_ know Yun-seong?" they again said at the same time.

"Um, girls? We have company," Link said, getting their attention as the three looked at their attackers, who finally got enough over their shock at seeing their friends being attacked to start advancing. They then looked at each other, determined looks at their faces before they nodded and each got into a fighting stance.

"Alright, here we go! You ready?" she asked Link.

"You bet."

"I am too," said the girl with them. "I am Talim, by the way."

"I'm Link."

"Seong-Mina. Bet you I can take out the most!" she suddenly declared with a competitive smirk.

"Ha! You're on!"

Talim briefly turned to them in shock, rather surprised at them treating this as if it was a contest before shaking that off and turning back towards their attackers. "I do not like violence. But I will also not hold back."

"Then, let's do this," Seong Mi-Na replied before they all let out a "RHAAA!" and rushed to meet their attackers head on.

* * *

 **A/N: Aaaand, stop. I decided to end it here just because I felt like it :)**

 **Did you like the little reference to the Guinness Book of World Records? Just a random thought that popped in my head as I wrote down the part of getting to Istanbul in record time.**

 **I did not believe the distance and time ran by Link and Taki was too unbelievable as I read a man once set a record by running three marathons in a single day, flying to each location after each one as each one was held in a different state with the first one starting early in the morning. That's almost 75 miles of running in one day! So I felt the two running in the time and distance given was not unreasonable.**

 **I couldn't find an exact population of Istanbul in 1591 but knew it had declined to 50,000 some decades prior, so I just guessed it went over 100,000 by then.**

 **While in the games it shows Link surviving high falls, most Zelda games depict him suffering relatively little health from it and even landing on his feet, albeit with a large cry of pain. I thought it was rather unrealistic, and so I tried to depict it where Link COULD survive decent heights but was not willing to take such chances where possible.**

 **I remember watching a YouTube video called Game Theory where it talked about the Hookshot and weight and mechanics of it. If it was made of steel, it would weigh 100+ pounds. I'm guessing it weighs less but still around 50 pounds or so. Chalk it up to it being a lighter alloy not named in game. Hyrulium maybe?**

 **I bet you were expecting Talim and Yun-Seong to be next to meet Link based on the last chapter? Nope! I had Seong Mi-Na be first since from what I read online, she first met Talim in Istanbul before encountering Yun-Seong shortly afterwards with her.**

 **I was trying to figure out how to best get them to meet and decided to use thieves from the desert as a way to do it with what I have planned. I based their appearance on the default look and outfit for the "Assassin" character in SC II. But just how did Seong Mi-Na encounter them? And just who are they and why are they after them?**

 **Find out next time!**

 **For now, this is Agent Ghost-Writer 000 signing off.**


	18. Chapter 18 - Istanbul II

**A/N: ...Meh, I got nothing.**

 **.**

This is a sentence. - Narration. No character speaking or thinking.

"This is a sentence." - Character speaking out loud.

'This is a sentence.' - Character speaking in his/her head.

"(This is a sentence.)" - Character speaking out loud but in a language unfamiliar to the characters (and I was too lazy to research the correct wording).

This _is_ a sentence. - Emphasis placed on the italic word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

This IS a sentence. - Same as with the single italic, just a variation of expressing the emphasis.

 _This is a sentence. -_ All italics means the event is happening in a dream or flashback of which I would give a quick note prior saying a dream or flashback is occurring.

 _This_ is _a sentence_. - During a dream or flashback, emphasis placed in the normal text word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

 **.**

 **I do not own The Legend of Zelda or Soul Calibur.**

* * *

 **Chapter 18 - Istanbul II**

"That's three!"

"Ha! I'm on five!"

"This is (urgh) not a contest!"

"Speak for yourself! I'm on four!"

"..."

These were but several comments made as the group of five continued taking out the thieves that had been attacking them. After Link and Seong Mi-Na started their little contest, Yun-Seong joined in keeping score while Talim did not and Taki just stayed silent and focused on their attackers. To anyone nearby at ground level, they would be looking up in surprise at seeing multiple masked figures being pummeled or thrown off the rooftops in rather rapid succession.

By now they had dwindled the numbers considerably so that only ten of them were left. Make that eight. Seven...no, six. Five left. Wait, now three. Make that two...now one...

"Hwaa...Aww, no more?" cried Yun-Seong as he looked around for more enemies to fight after knocking out the last one with a hard spin kick. "Oh, well. I had nine. How about you?"

"Aww, I only had eight," cried Link.

"Ha! Beat you! I had nine as well!" shouted Seong Mi-Na.

"This is _not_ a contest!" went Talim.

"Aww, are you mad you only got six, Talim?"

"No! I just don't think such a fight is worth having a contest over...and you were counting?" Yun-Seong just shrugged with a smirk, much to her annoyance.

"Wait! There's one!" Link shouted, getting their attention and pointed towards a thief who was trying to sneak away on the opposite side of the roof, only to turn towards them in fear at being caught. Link, Yun-Seong, and Seong Mi-Na looked at each other for a bit, realizing what the others were thinking.

"I GOT HIM!" they all shouted at once as they all rushed after him.

Aware of the danger he was in, the remaining thief quickly jumped off nearly two stories down to the ground, landing in a roll before quickly getting up and turning at an intersection and continued running down the alleys. "Where'd he go?" Yun-Seong shouted as he looked over the railing trying to spot him, Link and Seong Mi-Na joining him. After several seconds of searching, though, they still could not see where he went.

"We should leave as well."

The trio turned behind them to see Taki addressing them. This caused a bit of a glare to appear on the Koreans' faces, much to Link's confusion. "Unless you want to wait for the local authorities to arrive?"

As if on cue, several shouts were being made by what sounded like police officers. Lots of them. The two Koreans looked at each other a bit, then to Taki with a nod. "Fine. But...where to exactly? We only just got here this morning," Yun-Seong replied.

"I checked into an inn earlier. Not too far from here. We can wait for things to calm down from there," Seong Mi-Na offered, though still gave a look to Taki when she said that, as if a bit hesitant towards her.

"That will work. Lead the way, then."

* * *

The five ran across the rooftops for a while before eventually going on ground level. They carefully navigated through the alleys, careful to look for any authority figures before continuing. Just as they were about to exit the alleyways, Seong Mi-Na suddenly stopped, hesitating as she peaked her head out of the alley.

"Something wrong, Seong Mi-Na?"

She turned towards Yun-Seong, then at the others with a bit of an embarrassed look on her face. "Um..." She looked back one more time before replying. "I'm...just worried of people looking at me as I am," she said, gesturing towards her state of wear.

"Hm, perhaps you should have worn something a little less...revealing. Especially in these lands," Taki commented.

"Don't judge me!"

"Merely stating you should plan ahead, next time."

"I don't need advice from you after what _your_ people have done!"

"Please, let us not fight amongst ourselves," Talim spoke up, stepping between them. This got the two to stop, though Seong Mi-Na still gave Taki a glare who just stayed her neutral expression.

"Here, use mine."

The two turned in surprise to see a cloak being held up next to Seong Mi-Na. She turned to see the young boy, Link if she remembered right, holding it up for her with a nervous smile on his face. She gingerly took it, looking between him and the cloak for a bit before she gave a grateful smile in return.

"Thank you, Link. That's very sweet of you," she said with a nod as she wrapped it around her, buttoning it up as she did.

Link gave a bashful chuckle at that. "Yo-You're welcome. Glad I could help," he said, rubbing the back of his head as he did which just got Seong Mi-Na to let out a soft laugh in return. He looked really cute when he did that.

"Hmph. Well, now that we've solved that problem, can we get a move on, please?" Yun-Seong said impatiently.

"Agreed. We should keep moving lest we draw more attention to ourselves. How much further?" Taki asked.

"Oh. Uh, just a few more streets down. This way."

* * *

They reached the inn without difficulty, getting passing glances at most from the passerbies seeing the odd group between them. They soon found themselves all in Seong Mi-Na's room, sitting in a circle with Link and Talim sitting to the sides of Taki while Yun-Seong and Seong Mi-Na sat next to each other. The two Koreans refused to sit next to Taki, much to Link's continued confusion who just stayed silent about it. Plus, what did she mean earlier by "what Taki's people had done?" Did her clan attack them at one point? They were still giving a hard look at her a bit while Taki stayed as she was, unaffected by their glaring at her.

Off the corner of his eye, he noticed Talim was looking intently at him, but when he turned in her direction, she suddenly looked rather embarrassed and turned to the side a bit, a hint of red appearing on her cheeks. Strange. Was she nervous about something? He had to admit, though, he could feel the tension in the air from Yun-Seong and Seong Mi-Na, and it was starting to get to him as well.

"So, um...quite a day, huh?" Link nervously chuckled. That seemed to at least break the tension somewhat as Talim spoke up.

"Indeed. It has been a rather...interesting day to say the least," she said, getting the others to slowly nod in agreement.

"That's putting it mildly," Yun-Seong commented.

"You mean fighting dozens of masked men trying to kill you isn't a normal day for you?" Seong Mi-Na joked, getting Yun-Seong to smirk at that.

"Hmph. Maybe not _dozens_ , but it wouldn't be the first time I was attacked by multiple thieves. Remember that group we met in India, Talim?"

"Indeed. Only there were maybe a half dozen then and not like _three_ dozen today."

"Forty, actually."

The group turned to Taki at that. "You actually counted?" Talim asked

"I merely took the liberty of adding them up while you had your little 'contest.' When my total was included, I counted 40 thieves in total."

The remaining group blinked at that before looking at each other. "Ha! That means Seong Mi-Na and I beat you!" Yun-Seong suddenly shouted, getting everyone to now turn to him. "If we each got 9, Link here got 8 and Talim got 6, that means you only got 8, then!"

"Wow, I didn't know you could do math, Yun-Seong," Seong Mi-Na jabbed, getting him to glare at her, who just smiled innocently in return.

Taki mentally rolled her eyes at that. "Still focused on your little 'game?'"

"Ha! You're just jealous you lost," Yun-Seong bragged.

"Hardly. I do not play such foolish games."

"Mm, what about those times we were racing while going through Turkey?" Link chimed in, making Taki's eye twitch at that.

"That was training. Not 'racing' as you put it."

"So, your idea to see who could reach each town first or who would last the longest running all day wasn't racing, then?"

Taki didn't dignify that with an answer, but the rest saw her eye twitch again at that while Link just smiled. Maybe the kid wasn't so bad, Yun-Seong and Seong Mi-Na thought with a small smirk on their faces. Taki was also going to mention that since one thief escaped and was one Yun-Seong had fought, that would have lowered his score, but she decided to let it be. She wasn't going to be baited again into such childish antics.

"(ahem) Perhaps we should start with introductions. I am Taki."

"I am Talim. It is a pleasure to meet everyone," she said politely.

"I am Link. Nice to meet everyone too," he said rather cheerfully, getting a couple giggles from the girls sans-Taki at the way he said it.

"I am Seong Mi-Na," she said politely, mainly to Talim and Link but still gave a hard look towards Taki.

"Yun-Seong," he said rather impatiently.

Taki nonetheless nodded despite his tone before continuing. "Now, then. I believe I know the answer, but I just want to hear it from you. Why were you following us?"

"Well, if you know the answer, why bother asking the question?" came the retort from Yun-Seong, prompting a small frown on the others' faces.

"Like I said, I merely want to hear it from you rather than assume," Taki calmly replied but mentally frowned a bit. Already she could tell this was likely going to be a difficult conversation. Fortunately, his companion seemed more level-headed.

"Because you possess shards of it, don't you? The shards of Soul Edge?" came the soft answer from Talim. Immediately, the room got noticeably tenser upon the mention of those words. Although Link and Taki having shards of Soul Edge was news to one of them.

"They do?" Seong Mi-Na asked in surprise, which was not unnoticed by Taki.

"Talim-"

"It is alright, Yun-Seong. They may possess shards of the evil blade, but I sense no evil from _them_. We can trust them."

"Hmph. Him, maybe. Not so much _her,_ " he retorted while gesturing to Link and then Taki, Seong Mi-Na giving a nod in agreement.

"Please, let us not get in another fight, Yun-Seong," Talim stated, trying to calm him down before turning to Taki. "As I was saying, I know you have shards of the blade. We followed you to see what you knew of them and perhaps find the blade itself."

Taki idly noticed Yun-Seong cross his arms and turn away, seemingly unhappy with his friend explaining that, but she ignored it. "Hmm, very interesting. And you did not know of this?" Taki asked, addressing Seong Mi-Na at the end. "You were all following us, were you not?"

"Well, about that," Seong Mi-Na started, suddenly feeling a bit sheepish. "You see...um, I was not traveling with them. We all just met up by chance."

"Oh?" Taki questioned with a raised eyebrow. Now THIS was an interesting development. Perhaps they could get more information on Soul Edge than she thought...if they don't all kill each other first. Yun-Seong in particular looked like he was looking for an excuse to fight, especially after their earlier encounter. She'll have to keep an eye on him. Plus she wasn't sure what their motives were in finding the blade, something she'll need to determine how trustworthy they were.

"Let me guess. You came here to take me back, Seong Mi-Na? Your father's orders, no doubt?" Yun-Seong commented in displeasure. Things were already bad enough dealing with the ninja woman, and Seong Mi-Na being here just made it worse. The fact Talim seemed so willing to share about Soul Edge didn't help matters. And then there was that kid in green. Sure he helped save his friend, but there was something in the way Talim looked at him that he didn't like. And Seong Mi-Na, for that matter.

"Well, you did take the sword I lent you when you left. I wasn't expecting you to just LEAVE THE COUNTRY with it. It IS a family heirloom, after all," she replied in kind, giving him a harsh look as she did.

That actually got Yun-Seong to flinch slightly, a brief flash of regret on his face at that. "Well...perhaps...but I'm not going to just head back now that you've found me. Not until I get what I came for."

"It's not worth it Yun-Seong," Talim chimed. "No evil power is worth protecting your country with."

"That again, Talim? When are you going to stop pestering me about that?"

"Until you start listening to me." Yun-Seong just rolled his eyes.

"Let us focus on the present for the time being," Taki quickly interrupted, not wanting another argument to break out. The trio looked at each other a bit before settling down. "Now then. I know you followed us into the alley, but it appears multiple things happened from there and ended up with the thieves attacking you in particular, Talim," she said, looking in her direction. "Would you be so kind as to share what happened after you went into the alley after us?"

She spared a look with Yun-Seong, who just gave an annoyed "do whatever" arm-wave, before starting her explanation. "Certainly. Here is what happened that I know of..."

* * *

 _(Flashback, half an hour ago)_

 _Two cloaked figures were walking around town. They had been touring the place for a couple hours now, Talim using the wind to guide her. However, she found herself unusually frustrated in not knowing what the wind was telling her. It seemed to come in garbled and mixed messages, as if the wind itself was confused. It was strange, as she never felt anything like that before since becoming a wind priestess._ _Suddenly, she stopped as she felt a familiar dark energy._

 _"Something wrong, Talim?" Yun-Seong asked and seeing his friend suddenly stop._

 _"I sense it."_

 _"Sense what? That strange wind again?"_

 _"No. Well...maybe, but more importantly, Soul Edge," she responded cautiously. "I am sure of it. Its energy is faint, but it is close. Someone is holding shards of it here."_

 _That got his attention. Finally! A trace of the sword he was searching for. "Finally! Where do you sense it? Who has it?"_

 _Talim looked around, trying to pinpoint its location. Finally, she spotted two figures with their backs towards them who looked to be asking a pair of merchants of some kind. "Them. By those stands over there in cloaks."_

 _Yun-Seong looked where she was pointing to the figures in question. "The one with the funny green hat and the other one with black hair?"_

 _"Yes. They undoubtedly have the shards with them."_

 _"Then maybe they know where it is. Let's follow them."_

 _"Quietly," she cautioned. "There might be more of them out there."_

 _"Hey, it's me," he quipped with a wink before following them at a distance._

 _Talim shook her head at his antics before joining him. They followed them for a little over five minutes before Yun-Seong had a suspicious look on his face. They looked to be backtracking, going back to where they were before. Did they spot them?_

 _They saw the taller figure admire something at a vendor before they walked into an alley. "Hurry! Or we'll lose them!" he urged before quickly moving towards the alley they went in, Talim close behind._

 _They cautiously entered before Yun-Seong suddenly spoke up. "Listen, I think they know we're following them."_

 _"How can you be sure?" Talim asked._

 _"I noticed they seemed to be backtracking since we started following them. Then they suddenly go into an alley?" he trailed off._

 _"So, what should we do?"_

 _"Hmm...I'll go topside, surprise them from above. You stay down here and see where they go. If there's trouble, I'll drop from above. Alright?"_

 _Talim thought it over a bit before nodding in agreement. "Right. Good luck."_

 _"Heh, I make my own luck," he quipped before looking for a way to get to the rooftops while Talim shook her head at that before following where the two figures went._

 _She stealthily approached the intersection they had turned at, peeking her head out just enough to see one of them turn at another intersection. She followed as closely as she could, and each time she turned, she managed to see the person turn at another intersection some distance away._ _Finally at one intersection, she decided not to follow directly and instead moved forward one intersection and try to cut them off. But when she did..._

 _No one was there._

 _'Strange, I thought for sure I could catch them by surprise. So where are they? Wait...what's that? That feeling?'_

 _She felt a change in the wind, one that strangely felt like the wind she felt back in Egypt, the one that felt like it was trying to keep hidden. It was faint, but she was sure it was nearby. She slowly navigated through the area, trying to sense where it was. Maybe in finding out about Soul Edge, she can also find something out about this faint wind?_

 _'Hmm, it feels like it's just around the corner, just beyond this intersection-'_

 _BOOM!_

 _"What the!?"_ _What was-What was that...that boom?"_ _she started, surprised by what sounded like a cannon going off. Was there an attack happening in the town? Or- "Oh no! Yun-Seong!"_

 _Concerned for her friend, she quickly turned around and raced toward where she heard the noise, ignoring the mysterious wind she was following earlier. After a minute, though, she was having no luck. Was he alright? Or if it was someone else, were they alright? She continued on, hoping she wasn't too late. As she turned at another intersection, she was suddenly surprised to see multiple masked figures turning her way from another intersection, stopping her cold in her tracks._

 _"What? Who are_ they _?"_

 _"(Look! There she is!)" one of them shouted and pointed at her, then raised his sword in the air before chasing after her._

 _"Oh, no. Not good!" she shouted upon seeing them give chase to her before turning around to retreat. "Why are they after_ me _?" she said to herself as she ran. Skilled as she was in combat, she wasn't about to fight multiple masked men in an enclosed area._ _She was about to make another turn, only to slow down at seeing even more masked figures coming from that direction._

 _'Seriously, why are they after_ me _? What did I do to them?'_

 _Cut off, she kept going straight, going up a staircase that led to a higher level in the neighborhood._ _"Yun-Seong, where are you!?" she yelled._

 _Thinking of her friend reminded her that he was above somewhere on the rooftops. 'Maybe I can spot him if I go topside too and help me get away from these people!'_

 _With that in mind, she looked for a quick way to get to a roof as she kept running. She turned behind her to see her pursuers were but thirty feet away. She looked forward again where she happened to notice a part of a building with a staircase on the side leading upwards._

 _'Perfect. Right to the roof.'_

 _Once she got up top, she looked around, trying to spot her friend on a nearby rooftop, but her vision was obscured by various items of clothing hung outside._

 _"(Hurry! Don't let her get away!)"_

 _She turned to see her pursuers joining her on the roof, forcing her to keep moving. She jumped to another rooftop, followed by another, only to stop at seeing yet ANOTHER group of masked men approaching from the direction she was headed._

 _"What!? How did they find me? WHY are they after me? AH! SOMEONE HELP ME!"_

* * *

(Flashback end)

"Cornered, I was then forced to fight them off. Fortunately, it wasn't long before Link and Seong Mi-Na arrived to help me, of which, I am extremely grateful. Thank you," she said with a soft smile and nod of her head to them.

"Aww...it was nothing," Link said rather bashfully, rubbing the back of his head at the praise, earning a giggle from Talim which just made him blush more.

"You're welcome. We're glad we could help," Seong Mi-Na added with a smile and nod in return but also giggled at Link's cute reaction to Talim.

"And thank you, and you," she said as she gestured to Yun-Seong and then Taki, "for your help as well," she said with another smile and nod to them, which Taki nodded in return.

"Of course! You can always count on me, Talim!" Yun-Seong said cheerfully, pounding his chest once as he did, eliciting another soft laugh from Talim.

"I must say...your story is a most interesting development." Everyone then turned to Taki, who had a thoughtful look on her face.

"What do you mean, miss Taki?" Talim asked softly.

"Did you or your friend ever encounter these thieves before?"

"Of course not," Yun-Seong replied. "If we had, I would have made sure they would think twice about coming after us again."

"...Indeed," Taki replied, noting his boastfulness but ignored it. "Which is my point. Why would these thieves come after you instead of us when you have not had contact with them previously like Link and myself?"

"Or me?" Seong Mi-Na chimed, getting everyone's attention.

"You? You had encountered them before?" Taki asked in surprise.

"Wait, I remember," said Link who turned to Seong Mi-Na. "You mentioned the thieves were after you when we were running from them. Why were they after you? When did _you_ meet them?"

"Well, I was on my way to Europe when I encountered a group of these men in Syria. At first I only saw one of them and saw him using similar moves to an old friend of mine so I introduced myself, only to find he was not me friend. Nonetheless he kindly offered to take me to an inn, only to find more of his men arrive and try to capture me when I saw they took me to a room with multiple women being held prisoner there. They wanted me to be part of their leader's...concubines, and so I fought back and freed the women who had already been captured. I helped them all escape to safety before more of their tribe had arrived. I took one of their horses and eventually lost them in the desert, though I had to give up the horse to someone to avoid being followed, though it appears they were still able to do so," she finished drawing a few comments mixed with wonder and disgust at her ordeal, Link in particular.

"They were keeping women prisoner?" Link asked in surprise and disgust, Seong Mi-Na nodding in reply. "Why? Why would they do such a thing?"

"Have to admit, they're very sick people," said Yun-Seong, getting similar responses from the others.

"And what is a 'concubine,' anyway?"

Everyone looked at Link at that question. He said it innocently enough but with enough tone to indicate he figured it was a bad thing. This was one of those types of questions Taki hoped to avoid with Link, not wanting him to lose his innocent nature. "Hmm...how to explain it. Well, in simplest terms, it means a woman held against her will to satisfy a man's...desires. A slave, basically."

Link's eyes narrowed at that. How they could treat women like that? Or anyone like that, for that matter? And what "desires" did Taki mean? Whatever it was, the fact they were treated as slaves was enough for him to know it was a bad thing. "I see...it sounds just...awful. I'm glad you were able to rescue all of them from those...I don't know what to call them."

"Indeed," Seong Mi-Na replied before she decided to change the subject a bit. "What about you? Why were they after you, Link?" she asked, with Taki mentally relieved at not having to explain further.

"Oh, well, they encountered us by chance in the desert in hoping to rob us, but we fended them off and escaped without much difficulty," Link answered.

"Only there were but ten of them when we last met them instead of forty," Taki added.

"That was about the same for me, too. Although I think one of them said he was the leader of the new 'Hashshāshīn,' whatever that is," said Seong Mi-Na.

"The Hashshāshīn?" Taki echoed in mild surprise, eyes widened briefly at that.

"Yes...Do you know them?"

"Partially. I read a little history of these lands when I was last here, and there was group called the 'Hashshāshīn,' or 'Order of Assassins' hundreds of years ago before they died out. The leader formed it for his own political and personal gain as well as to exact revenge on his enemies. They would kill political targets they deemed against their interests or just kill targets for money, both within their lands and those of their enemies, often sneaking into enemy territory under disguise before making their move."

"Sounds like someone else I know," Yun-Seong commented, looking directly at Taki as he did.

"Enough, Yun-Seong," Talim chided.

Taki spared but a brief glance at him before she took a moment to process that before continuing. "And it appears someone has brought back the group. Or tried to, anyway. Perhaps a descendant of the original Hashshāshīn or otherwise one inspired by it so much as to form it again."

"Well, I'd say it's fallen apart, now. And good riddance," Yun-Seong commented, drawing similar responses from the rest of the group.

"Agreed. But there is still the issue of how they found us. Judging by both of our encounters, either they operated in multiple groups throughout the lands or they somehow convinced more to join their little band by the time they arrived here. Which still bothers me how they seemed to have followed us here. You, Link AND me. And you are sure it was the same ones you met in the desert?" she asked Seong Mi-Na.

"Without a doubt. Same clothes, swords, appearance, everything.

"I see..."

The group was silent a bit as they processed what they learned before Taki spoke up again. "Well, we can worry about that later. For now, let us focus on what happened recently. If I understand correctly, it was the two of you traveling together, yes?" she asked looking at Talim and Yun-Seong, who both nodded. "Then why were _you_ following us?" she asked now looking at Seong Mi-Na.

"Well, it went like this..."

* * *

 _(Flashback, half an hour ago)_

 _'Now, if I were to look for something on Soul Edge, where would I go?'_

 _Seong Mi-Na had been walking around town for a couple hours after finding an inn for the night despite the fact it was still only in the morning when she arrived. She had had promising leads on Soul Edge last time she was here four years ago, and so decided to hang around town longer than a day to see if she could find anything. That, and make sure she had a room before they filled up. Better safe than sorry, she thought. Plus, maybe she could get a little payback from that woman with the sword-whip who defeated her last time she was here?_

 _She was eating lunch at a tavern before she overhead someone mutter the words "Soul Edge." She immediately perked up and turned her head to her right to see who said that, finding two cloaked figures with their backs towards her, though the hoods were down with one being much taller than the other. It seemed they were having lunch as well as they talked to the man serving drinks at the counter. She tried to act normally as she ate her lunch, trying to keep an eye on them. However, at one point as she looked down a few seconds to take another bite of her food and looked up again...the figures had vanished!_

 _'Oh, no. Where did they go?'_

 _Panicking at the thought of losing a chance on finding Soul Edge, she quickly got up, shoving money to a surprised server for her food as she quickly got out to follow them. She looked around a bit before spotting them walking down a crowded street. She tried to keep up but was having trouble trying to not bump into people on the rather crowded street. Ultimately, she lost sight of them for a minute or so until she saw a pair of cloaked figures down the road, hoods now up._

 _'There they are,' she thought as she continued following them for several minutes before seeing them walk into an alley. 'Oh, no you don't. You're not losing me that easily.'_

 _She turned into the alley, only to curse in her native tongue at seeing no sign of them. 'Great. Now what?'_

 _She walked towards an intersection, trying to find any sign of where they went before spotting a local woman carrying a basket of food on her head. "Um, excuse me. Did you see anyone walk by here?"_

 _The woman looked at her a bit, possibly not understanding what she said but then wordlessly pointed to the right where she last saw him._

 _"Thank you," Seong Mi-Na replied with a nod before heading in that direction. After a couple minutes of searching though, she still had no luck finding either of them until just as she turned a corner, she spotted one of them turning her way. She quickly jumped back, hoping she wasn't seen as she pulled out her Zanbatou from beneath her cloak and wrapped her mask around her face before lying in wait._

 _'Getting closer...that's it. And... NOW!' she shouted to herself before springing her weapon forward towards the figure's head, who immediately stopped in his tracks and seeing her blade ready to impale him. Inside, she was surprised it was a younger figure but recognized the green cap from before._

 _"Uhhh, good morning! Um...lovely weather, huh? You come here often?"_

* * *

(Flashback end)

That last part got a pair of raised eyebrows from Taki and Yun-Seong while Seong Mi-Na and Talim just giggled at Link, who was a little embarrassed at that being brought up. She then proceeded to explain the rest as it happened, Link chiming in every now and then until they reached the point of them helping Talim. Then a thought came back to Seong Mi-Na as she looked at Link. "Also, just where in the world did pull that...thing that caused that...that boom? It was as if a cannon went off!" she exclaimed, trying to find the right words to describe it. "And that other object that took us to the rooftop so quickly? That yellow...chain-thing? How did you do that?"

Link was now getting very nervous. He knew his actions would attract unwanted attention—and questions. He figured Taki would probably be upset with him now, but he wasn't exactly in the best position to NOT use them. "Um...well, uh..."

'Great. NOW what do I do?' he thought as he nervously looked at Taki.

Taki just gave her usual stoic expression, but now she knew it was indeed Link that caused that incident. She was not surprised, as only Link had the means to cause the incident. And with Seong Mi-Na to witness it, no less. She was not really upset, though, as she knew he would only have revealed such abilities in emergency situations, and this was certainly the case. With that in mind, she saw his nervous look and decided to step in.

"It is alright Link, I am not upset with you," she said, making him relax slightly before turning towards Seong Mi-Na. "It is a secret of his, one of which I too have not yet been able to determine and one he has chosen not to share with at this time. I can assure you he is trustworthy and have seen him perform similar feats myself. If he does not wish to share them, that is his decision, and I respect his decision to do so."

"Hmph. Who asked you? She was asking Link, not you, _ninja_ ," Yun-Seong interjected rather harshly, much to Link's surprise. What was he so mad about?

"As I said, it is a sensitive topic to him, and I have found him trustworthy enough to not find it necessary to push the issue in the time I've known him."

"Uh, huh. And why should we take _your_ word for it, _ninja_? Not like I believe it anyway."

"And what's THAT supposed to mean?" Seong Mi-Na asked angrily, crossing her arms at what she heard as him calling her a liar.

"Come on, you really say he pulled those objects 'literally from nowhere,' Seong Mi-Na? Be serious," he said while giving Link an I-don't-believe-any-of-that look.

"I _am_ serious! Why would I make that up?"

"As unbelievable as it is, it is the truth," Taki interrupted, getting them to look at her, though Seong Mi-Na wasn't sure if she was glad someone backed her up or upset it was Taki backing her up.

"Oh, really? Prove it then. Show me," he challenged, looking at Link as he did.

Link frowned at that. He had to admit, this guy was really starting to get on his nerves, and everyone else's for that matter from the looks on everyone else's faces. Still, he was hesitant to demonstrate his magic as he looked at Taki. "It is alright. Show what you are comfortable, Link."

He looked back and suddenly felt a little small at seeing everyone looking at him expectantly as they were. He took a deep breath before standing up, then muttered something before he pulled out his Hookshot seemingly out of nowhere, much to the astonishment of three.

"What the-?" - Yun-Seong.

"Amazing!" - Seong Mi-Na.

"Oh, wow! How did you do that?" - Talim.

Everyone else then stood up to look at the strange object, eyes wide in amazement other than Taki, who simply raised an eyebrow but still gave a curious gaze, not familiar with the object in question as Link had not shown it to her previously. "What is it, anyway?" she asked.

"It's called a Hookshot. It's a spring-loaded chain I can use to latch onto things and pull myself towards whatever I hit, or if small enough, pull the object towards me. I got it as a thank you present from a fisherman back home, who said he mainly used it to catch fish."

Everyone gave him a look at that. First off, a _fisherman_ of all people had this...Hookshot, and second, all he used it for was to catch fish? It looked like it could be used in a lot more practical ways than that. And the fact it looked expensive and difficult to make and he just GAVE it as a reward for helping him? That just sounded odd to them. Before they could ask anything else, Link put it away, making it disappear just as quickly as it appeared, amazing them further. Well, almost.

"Alright, just what magic trick are you pulling, kid?" Yun-Seong demanded.

"Huh?"

"Don't give me that! Where are you hiding that? Do that again," he said angrily, still not believing what he was seeing.

Link let out a frown and light grumble in frustration. It looked nothing was going to please the hothead no matter what he did. Still, he pulled it out like before, making everyone pause again. "Now let me see that a minute."

A rather mischievous grin adorned Link's face before he shrugged. "Alright. Here," he said calmly before placing it in Yun-Seong's hands...before chuckling at his surprised expression at the sudden weight in his arms, almost falling down in the process.

Yun-Seong grunted, pulling it towards his chest with both arms. Just how heavy _was_ this thing? And where the hell was he keeping it? As he was holding it, the girls took the time to observe it again as well as take turns holding it, each of them just as surprised by its weight. Talim in particular almost fell backwards, only for Link to quickly run behind her to hold her up. Her heart pounded a bit, both at almost falling over...and Link preventing her from falling. "U-Um...thank you, Link," she said softly, a light blush forming on her cheeks.

Link finally realized he was still holding her a bit after helping her up, making him blush in return before quickly letting go. "Y-You're welcome," he replied nervously.

The other three had different reactions to Link's actions.

'Aww, that's so sweet. Wish he would do that for me...wait, where did that come from!?' Seong Mi-Na thought, shaking her head while fighting a blush trying to form on her face.

'Why that little...who does he think he is!?' - Yun-Seong thought with a bit of an angry look on his face.

'Hmph. Blackmail.' - Taki smirked to herself but outwardly just raised an eyebrow.

After calming down, Talim went back to looking at the "Hookshot" in her arms. It had to be at least forty, fifty pounds, which made everyone question how Link was carrying it around so casually. This was further compounded when Link took it back and casually put it away, i.e. made it vanish again.

"Satisfied?"

Apparently not, at least for Yun-Seong as he was still not letting it go. "Alright, seriously, kid. Just HOW did you do that? What allows you to do that, already?"

Taki saw a familiar twinkle in Link's eyes before he replied. "Mmm...can you keep a secret, Yun-Seong?" he asked nervously.

Yun-Seong paused a bit at seeing his hesitance before shrugging, figuring he would finally learn how he did his little trick. "Of course I can," he replied before leaning in to hear his secret.

"So can I," Link said nonchalantly before calmly sitting back down, giving an innocent look to the group as if nothing happened.

"What-Hey! What was that about!?" Yun-Seong shouted angrily, though for Talim and Seong Mi-Na it just made them laugh.

"HA-HA-HA-HA-HA! Ooooh, he got you good on that one, Yun-Seong," Seong Mi-Na teased.

"That's NOT funny, Seong Mi-Na!"

"Sure it is!" she continued laughing, Talim doing the same, though, was trying to cover her mouth to try to stop her laughing, with considerable difficulty.

Yun-Seong just sat back down in frustration, glaring at Link as he did who just gave an eyes-closed smile in return, making him let out another grunt. Out of her friend's view, Seong Mi-Na couldn't help but flash a thumbs up to Link as she sat down, who gave one back in return also out of Yun-Seong's view.

Deciding to end Yun-Seong's torture (though was still inwardly amused at seeing Link's trick pulled on someone else), Taki continued. "Now then. Continuing where we left off, I believe it is only fair I share my part in what happened recently. Or, would you prefer to, Yun-Seong as we were mostly together in that time?"

"No, by all means. Go ahead," he said in sarcastic politeness, still upset from earlier.

"Very well. After entering the alley, Link and I split up where the idea was Link would lose his pursuer for a bit before doubling back towards me, find _my_ pursuer to engage with while I ambushed from above, then take out the second pursuer. Obviously, things did not go according to plan..."

* * *

 _(Flashback, half an hour ago)_

 _After splitting up at an intersection, Taki quickly moved to another intersection and, seeing no one in the immediate vicinity, used her ninja skills to wall-jump on the buildings to quickly reach the rooftop. Immediately upon doing so, she ran towards where she split up with Link, expecting to find her pursuer nearby..._

 _Only to find no cloaked figure anywhere. She found a few people walking around, but nothing to promote suspicion. 'Strange. I KNOW this is where we split up. And I've checked the nearby alleys. Did they both go after Link? Or did they turn elsewhere?'_

 _She checked at another corner of the rooftop to look down at, then another, then the other. Still no sign. She jumped towards another rooftop, then another after seeing no sign of anyone. Not even Link._

 _"There you are!"_

 _Surprised by this outburst, Taki quickly turned around and got into a fighting stance at whomever had shouted at her, getting a good look at the person in question. The person was a young man with red hair, maybe 18 years old or so, and had an athletic build. He wore a vest that was white on his right pectoral and orange on his left and his torso was bare. He had white pants with a black design at the knees and ankles and had gauntlets that was white near the wrist but was brown near the elbow with an orange stripe down the middle. He had a belt with an intricate design held together with a red buckle that was smaller than the rest of the belt and a pair of yellow strips hung from the buckle down to his lower thigh. Finally, he looked to be of Korean descent, instantly telling her he was not a native, and wielded a thick, curved Chinese sword with an ornament handle that indicated it was of high quality design and luxury, which seemed to contradict his brash look and attitude._

 _"I've been looking for you," he started before his eyes widened and then narrowed at seeing her nationality, a somewhat pleased smile forming on his face. "Well, well. If it isn't an enemy from home? Things just got a whole lot more interesting."_

 _"Hmph. I have no quarrel with you or your people. Stand aside, boy."_

 _"Hmph. You tell me what you know about Soul Edge, and I_ might _just forget I ever saw you."_

 _Taki's eyes narrowed. Things did not go according to plan at all as her pursuer also had the foresight to follow from above like her, and seemed to know_ she _knew about Soul Edge_. _And it looked like she was not going to be able avoid a fight with this Korean, who was already looking to fight given their countries' recent history with each other. "And if I refuse?"_

 _"Then I'll just MAKE YOU!" he shouted as he unsheathed his sword and charged after her. He swung two high cross slashes, which Taki parried before countering with a thrust. Yun-Seong stepped out of the way, spinning as he did while swinging an upward strike in an arc, followed by a thrust after Taki parried the latter. Taki dodged to the side, only to backpedal to avoid and parry additional swings from the Korean before they locked swords._

 _"You're making a_ big _mistake," Taki stated as they continued pushing against each other's swords._

 _"The only one making a big mistake here is_ you _, wench!" he yelled, delivering a kick as he finished his sentence, which Taki ducked before stepping back to gain some distance._

 _"As I said, I have no interest in your lands or have had any part of the attacks."_

 _"Save it,_ ninja! _You're telling me what you know of Soul Edge or I'll tear you apart like the heartless killer you are!"_

 _"Hmph. You can try," she responded before they back into a fighting stance and slowly circled each other, each planning their next move. Finally, Yun-Seong charged again, making a series of slashes that Taki effortlessly parried. However, as she looked to move forward with a high thrust, Yun-Seong surprised her by ducking low and gave a right, hard spinning kick to her chin, the kick so hard that Taki was launched off her feet_ _! Yun-Seong quickly followed with another spinning kick to the face with his left foot while she was still in the air, making her spin in midair, then finished with a downward kick with his left to her back, just as she was starting to descend._

 _Taki shook her head at that, thoroughly caught off-guard by that last move. 'Grr, you get one. EVERYONE gets one,' she said to herself as she started getting up. Suddenly, her instincts kicked in and quickly rolled to the side, narrowly avoiding a downward thrust into her back. She countered with a footsweep, knocking him down. Not content with that, she reversed direction from her footsweep and followed with another kick as he tried to get up, hitting him directly in the face._

 _The two then quickly got back to their feet, an annoyed look on Yun-Seong's face after that last move. He once again went on the offensive, giving a couple slashes before following with another kick to the head. Taki parried his sword before grabbing his leg during his kick. She ducked under a follow-up kick from his other leg, using his momentum to take the leg in her hands and spin it towards the direction of his last kick. This slight change in his balance left him wide open for Taki to give a spinning elbow straight to his exposed stomach, followed by a straight right kick to the chin, then spun in the other direction to give another kick to his again exposed stomach._

 _She continued on the offensive, giving a series of slashes and kicks to the Korean, who was unable to counter and forced to block and dodge each strike. It didn't help that he had backed up into a set of clothes hanging out to dry on top of the roof, distracting him further. This resulted in a couple kicks connecting and one thrust almost grazing him in the abdomen. Fortunately for him, Taki overextended herself slightly on a kick, allowing him counter with one of his own to her side and stop her offensive assault and gain his footing again._

 _Taki had to admit, despite his brashness he was quite skilled, even able to get the first strike on her. But he seemed full of himself and overconfident in his abilities, and his anger at her seemed to always make him want to stay on the offensive. Deciding to use a trick Link used on her, she decided to stay on the defensive, let him wear herself out and strike when she saw an opening._

 _Yun-Seong seemed to notice this change as he noticed she stopped trying to attack him outright, seeming to deliberately stay on the defensive. "What's the matter? Afraid to attack me, wench? You a coward after all?" he shouted as he kept charging after her, attacking her along the way. He tried a hard thrust, only to see it parried away. "Grrr, stand still!"_

 _He followed with a series of kicks and slashes, only to find them dodged and parried, much to his frustration. Another paid of his kicks was each blocked with a kick from Taki. He then made a low swing to her legs, forcing her to parry with an awkward spinning motion, then followed with an upward slash towards her chin, which she narrowly dodged, only to be surprised by him actually doing the_ splits _towards her while performing a hard downward slash. She narrowly raised her sword in time to block the hard swing but found herself off-balance from the impact._

 _Seeing this, he quickly got up and tried to follow with another charge, but he took too long as Taki recovered so as to move forward and grab his arm mid-swing before giving a spinning elbow to the face, followed by a punch to the chest and a kick to the face again, pushing him back towards the rooftop's edge._

 _Yun-Seong muttered a curse in his native tongue, his frustration mounting at this ninja woman, who merely smirked at him, frustrating him even more. "I'll wipe that smile off your face, wench! Take THIS!" he shouted as he moved in to attack again-_

 _BOOM!_

 _He suddenly stopped in his tracks in surprise as he looked behind him to see what caused that noise. "What the hell was that!? Is there an army attacking?"_

 _Taki was similarly surprised, but she recognized that sound, and her suspicions immediately were toward her little green friend. 'Argh, Link, I thought we agreed not to use any magic that would draw attention to ourselves except in emergencies? What could cause him to do so?'_

 _"You seem to know something," she heard the young man shout to her, getting her attention. "What_ was _that? Something your friend did earlier? The one with the funny cap? What did he do?" he demanded._

 _She got back into a fighting stance, not dignifying him with an answer. "Giving me the silent treatment, huh? As I said earlier, you're telling me what you know about Soul Edge, and you're telling me NOW!" he yelled as he charged once again._

 _He gave a hard, spinning slice to her abdomen, only to see her backflip out of the way. He followed with several more swings, which Taki continued backflipping out of the way before jumping on top of the roof's edge after Yun-Seong missed again. He looked up at her in frustration, getting a look of contempt from her in return._

 _"Grr, stand STILL!" he shouted as he swung for the legs, Taki merely jumping out of the way back onto the roof. She blocked and parried a series of follow-up swings, taking a kick to the arm but doing little damage. They traded a few kicks, each of which were parried or dodged before Yun-Seong gave an overhead chop, which Taki blocked with both her blades into a sword-lock._

 _"(grunt) You're good, but you lack discipline," Taki commented._

 _"I'll show YOU discipline!" he shouted before shoving her off and prepared to follow-up with another attack-_

 _"AH! SOMEONE HELP ME!"_

 _Before he could continue his assault, he suddenly stopped a second time, surprised to hear someone shouting. A shouting that sounded familiar to him. "Wait, I know that voice..." he muttered, ignoring the ninja woman for the time being as he headed the rooftop edge where he thought he heard it coming from. Through the various hanging clothes draped along the rooftops, he was able to see between them enough to spot something that brought a chill to his spine._

 _"Talim! Hang on!" he then turned behind him towards the ninja woman. "I'll deal with you later," he declared before jumping towards the adjacent rooftop._

 _Taki watched in surprise and confusion as her attacker seemed to have ignored her entirely over the recent cry for help. Did he know whoever it was crying for help? She ran towards the rooftop edge the Korean had just jumped off of, looking to see what caught his attention. She looked to see the Korean still running straight but was looking a bit to his right, and so she looked in the distance to see where he was going. Her eyes widened at seeing several familiar figures gathering towards what appeared to be a young girl currently fending them off but was heavily outnumbered._

 _'The thieves from before! They somehow followed us!? But what do they want with that girl? And who is she? Did they cross swords with them before as well?'_

 _She shook those thoughts aside and quickly moved to help them, following the Korean across the rooftops. As she ran towards them, she noticed something else in the distance that made her briefly widen her eyes in surprise. 'Wait, was that Link? And who is that other girl with him? Where did she come from?'_

 _Ignoring that for now and seeing they seemed to have the same idea to help in mind, she proceeded to follow the Korean, who found himself surrounded by five of the thieves by the time she arrived. With a battle cry, she jumped high in the air before using her ki in her legs to quickly land and stomp down on one of the thieves hard into the ground before kicking the two right next to her._

 _Yun-Seong was just as surprised by this as the thieves, but he nonetheless had the presence of mind to first take out the other attackers before addressing her. "I don't need your help! Stay out of this!"_

 _"Like it or not, I'm helping too. My friend in green is assisting your friend as well, along with another," she gestured towards their destination._

 _Yun-Seong followed her gaze, only to widen his eyes in surprise again. "What!? Seong Mi-Na!? What the hell is she doing here!?"_

 _"As of right now, helping your friend. Listen, I suggest we call it a truce for now until these thieves have been dealt with. We can..._ continue _our business afterwards. Agreed?" she offered, kicking a thief to the side while still keeping her eyes on Yun-Seong in the process._

 _Yun-Seong looked between her and his friend, now friends, for a couple seconds before giving her a nod. "Fine. Just stay out of my way," he declared before rushing towards the next rooftop and before Taki could respond._

 _She then followed suit, idly wondering what they were going to do next after all this was said and done._

* * *

"And then you know the rest."

The room sat in silence as they processed everything that happened now that everyone's stories were told. It was such a wild, convoluted set of events with as many twists and turns as the alleyways of the town.

"So, let me see if I understand this correctly," Seong Mi-Na began. "First, I was following you two," she gestured to Link and Taki, "I lost you for a time, and in that time, now _you_ two," she gestured to Yun-Seong and Talim, "started following Link and Taki, and then the ones I THOUGHT I was following wasn't actually Link and Taki but in fact were Yun-Seong and Talim."

"So far so good," Yun-Seong replied dryly.

"Then Link and Taki went in the alleys and split up with Taki going up top while Link stayed below. Then Yun-Seong and Talim entered the alley with Yun-Seong _also_ going up top and Talim staying below. Then I ended up encountering Link and Yun-Seong ended up encountering Taki...Link and I fought and _Yun-Seong and Taki_ fought while Talim was still looking for you two."

"That sounds correct," Talim commented.

"Then the thieves suddenly appeared, with some of them following me and Link in the alleys while others followed Talim to the rooftops. Link and I helped each other escape to the rooftops from the thieves pursuing us. Then we all heard Talim cry for help, whereby we would all meet up together on the rooftops and take down the thieves, save Talim, then later avoid the police before finally making our way here to the inn."

"I'd say that's pretty much it in a nutshell," Link commented with a shrug, prompting most of them to look at Link in confusion.

"Huh?" Seong Mi-Na responded.

"It basically means she gave an accurate summary of an otherwise long description of events or circumstances," Taki explained, having heard of it herself.

"Oh." The group was silent again for a minute, processing it all before Seong Mi-Na voiced what everyone was thinking. "So, what do we do now?"

"Well, why don't we just look for Soul Edge together?" Link stated casually, only for everyone to look at him with funny, surprised and confused looks. "What?"

* * *

(Twenty minutes earlier)

In another part of town, the remaining thief was running for his life. He managed to escape from the incident unseen from the local police and was heading to rendezvous with his contact, but with great worry as nothing went according to plan and his men were all likely dead or in custody. He almost died himself after being thrown off the roof trying to make the boy fall from...whatever it was holding him up, but thankfully his men saved him.

They recovered in time to hear one of their men from above yell where the girl and boy were and so quickly rushed to finish their mission. Only for them to face two more that Zasalamel had warned them about. Their combined skills were too great for them, even when outnumbered 8 to 1, resulting in their defeat. He was fortunate he was able to escape at all, feigning being knocked out until he could make a move to escape. Although he was spotted, he was still able to get away. Though, now, he was starting to wonder if getting away was better or worse for him.

"(You're late,)" a deep voice spoke behind him, startling him as he quickly turned around to see his contact with a displeased look on his face.

"(And where is the rest of your men?)" he asked, though he already knew the answer.

"(F-Forgiveness, Lord Zasalamel. My men, they...they encountered some...difficulties in killing their targets. I am the only one left,)" he said very worriedly.

Zasalamel stayed silent, letting his failure hang in the air a bit before replying. "(How disappointing,)" he finally said, the thief flinching at his tone, "(I helped set up a trap to allow you to capture the boy as intended, and even with the slight change in plans in also killing the girl, you STILL had them surrounded, only to let them get away regardless,)" he said softly, but the sharpness in it was not lost in his tone. Or the scythe in his hands.

"(It wasn't our fault! The boy had some kind of magic! Causing that...that boom, and allowed him to evade me and my men! And that woman from before! The one who let our women escape in Syria! She was helping them-)"

SMACK!

He was then sent flying as Zasalamel backhanded him off his feet, dropping his sword in the process. "(I care not about your prior losses OR your excuses,)" he growled before continuing. "(It seems I was mistaken in enlisting your services. The new Hashshāshīn was nothing like the original. They at least were effective in their methods and got the job done. Now my plans are further in jeopardy thanks to your incompetence. And so, I believe it's time we part ways,)" he added, raising his scythe to strike.

"(N-No! Wait! Please! Don't-URGH!)"

He didn't get a chance to finish as the scythe sliced his head clean off, the body falling down seconds afterwards. Zasalamel let out one last grunt of disgust, though more at himself for what he felt was a gross miscalculation on his part. At the very least half of his plan almost came to fruition before it too failed as he thought back to what occurred...

* * *

 _(Flashback, ten minutes ago)_

 _Zasalamel hovered high in the air, too high to be seen by anyone without being mistaken for a bird of some kind as he observed the boy in green with that kunoichi. He instructed the newly formed Hashshāshīn he hired to wait for his signal before moving in to strike. He anticipated his target heading to Istanbul as he watched him and the kunoichi journey through the lands from a distance ever since they arrived. In the two and half months since they left Japan, he had been furthering his plans elsewhere across the continents until their arrival in Persia._

 _In that time, he learned of a group calling themselves the new Hashshāshīn. He remembered watching the original_ _Hashshāshīn centuries ago and was a little amused at seeing someone trying to reform it. Nonetheless, he_ _saw they could potentially be of use to him, and so he hired them with the promise of riches courtesy of the boy and woman, including shards of Soul Edge in their possession._

 _With their services secured, he then had the Hashshāshīn travel to Istanbul as fast as possible on their horses to beat them there and even managed to recruit more men along the way to join their little organization to further increase his odds for success. They arrived a full day ahead of the boy and kunoichi, allowing them to memorize the layouts of the city for possible ambush points per his instructions, and now he was waiting to give the signal to attack._

 _Suddenly his eyes widened at someone else that caught his attention, a girl traveling with what looked to be a red-headed young man. He could sense the wind magic in her, and it seemed she was following his target as well. Then by chance he looked off to the side to see what seemed to be ANOTHER cloaked figure following his target as well. It seemed others were possibly aware of their possession of shards of Soul Edge._

 _"This could cause problems, especially that wind girl. Something about her magic disturbs me. Hmm, how to fix this?" He saw the boy and woman split up, and when he saw the red-head and girl split up as well, his eyes widened in pleasant surprise as he got an idea. He vanished in a flash of light before reappearing on a rooftop where the_ _Hashshāshīn were waiting, crouched on the otherwise empty roof to stay out of sight until his arrival._

 _"(Z-Zasalamel?)" the leader said in surprise at his client's sudden appearance. It still amazed him and his men at what magic he could do, which was why they accepted an offer from him to go after a target of his in exchange for the promise of riches to help rebuild the Hashshāshīn like his ancestors of old. It was the shards of Soul Edge he said they had on them, though, that sealed the deal for them._

 _"(We have a slight change of plans. A girl of roughly 15 years old is also following the boy along with a red-headed companion of hers. They entered the alleys four buildings in that direction," he pointed, "_ _with the woman and red-head going to the roofs. The girl was moving towards that direction last I saw her with the boy going that way,)" he said while pointing in said directions. "(I will focus on finding the girl. But i_ _f by chance you happen to encounter her, kill her immediately.)"_

 _"(Kill her, my lord?)" he asked, a little surprised at the request to_ kill _the girl._

 _"(Did I stutter?)" he replied slowly...and dangerously._

 _"(N-No, my lord. Just wanted to make sure. And the boy?)"_

 _"(Plans unchanged with him. Capture the boy alive, if possible. Kill anyone else who interferes._ _Have some of your men on rooftop to keep sight of them and prevent an escape from above but make sure to keep out of sight from the woman and red-head who are over there,)" he pointed, showing the two several buildings down. "(If my suspicions are correct, those two will fight each other as long as you are not seen by them. Once the girl is dead and the boy captured, y_ _ou can have their shards of Soul Edge and any other riches on them afterwards. But I still get his sword. Understood?)"_

 _The thief leader gave a bow. "(Understood, Lord Zasalamel. Alright, move out! You men go below and cut off all escape routes. You men, with me to the roofs. Go!)" He shouted, his men scattering as instructed._

 _With that taken care of, Zasalamel then made his way to ground level himself, away from the_ _Hashshāshīn_ _before finding a suitable place for an ambush. After doing so, he then channeled some of his energy, deliberately making his presence known—in particular, to that girl with the wind magic. If his suspicions were correct, that girl should be able to sense his presence and likely come after him to investigate._

 _It was not a minute later that his suspicions were proven correct as he could the feel the girl slowly heading his way, getting closer with each passing second. Soon, all she had to do was turn the corner where he was waiting, and he would surprise her with his scythe._

 _'That's it. Just a little closer. A little closer...'_

 _BOOM!_

 _'What!?' The sudden boom surprised him, not expecting it at all. So much so that it took a few seconds for him to realize his target was now running away from him. 'NO! I almost had her!'_

 _He peered his head around the corner in time to see her turn at an alley, then for some of the Hashshāshīn to come into his view, then finally see the girl quickly turn back in another direction upon seeing the Hashshāshīn was had cut her off where she came from. He muttered a curse as he watched the_ _Hashshāshīn chase after her_ _. "I cannot afford for these travelers to see me just yet. At the very least, they better finish the girl. Or I will finish THEM," he declared before disappearing to the sky again and watched as they actually succeeded in surrounding the girl on rooftop._

* * *

"And yet they still failed, despite all the preparation and assistance I gave them," he said to himself as he spied where his targets were going from afar to avoid the authorities, plotting his next move. "The boy upset my plans once again, even if he is unaware of that fact. And now he's with even MORE people, it seems. And if they decide to travel together, it will make things even MORE difficult," he said to himself as he followed them to the inn. He then eavesdropped from outside as close as he could without being detected. "We'll see what transpires between them. Perhaps I can learn something that can help me gain what I need."

But when he heard the boy make his suggestion of joining together, his eyes widened in concern before narrowing. "Hmm, this is not good. Not good at all."

* * *

 **A/N: Annnd, done. Whew, this part has been a pain in the ass to write. Doesn't help that it began developing more into a filler chapter than an advancing-plot chapter. I figured it would have been too long to write all these encounters in one chapter, so I split it up into two chapters and will end up continuing into a third.**

 **The best way I could plausibly have a trap set by the thieves for Link in Istanbul when they last encountered them in Syria is for Zasalamel to help organize and coordinate their movements. Hopefully the way I presented it seemed reasonable and not too heavily flawed in any way.**

 **The Hashshāshīn, or Order of Assassins, existed from 1090 to 1275. I made up the part of the founder's descendant looking to reform it as it never reformed in real life.**

 **I also made up the part of Yun-Seong and Talim encountering some thieves in India. I just figured you can't expect each character to travel thousands of miles and not encounter at least some form of danger like common bandits every now and then.**

 **Also, I'm pretty sure you can guess who the "old friend" is of Seong Mi-Na's when she mistook an Assassin for him. He never appeared in SCII, and so Namco created the Assassin character that had blended some of his moves with some of Yun-Seong's to compensate.**

 **Finally, in case you were wondering, Taki did not initially see the Assassins while on the rooftops as her attention was down below in the alleys and then was distracted in fighting Yun-Seong, who was too focused on Taki to concentrate on anything else. Plus, I believe it was common for rooftops in those nations to have laundry hanging out to dry which would obstruct their view, at least in part so as to make it less likely to see suspicious activity on rooftop.**

 **But now with the immediate threat over, the group ponders the question asked earlier: "What do they do now?" Will they all join together in search of Soul Edge? Or at least some of them? One of them?...None?**

 **And just what will Zasalamel do after his plan fell through? And just what IS his ultimately goal anyway? And why does he consider Talim such a threat to him?**

 **Continue reading to find out!**

 **Until then, this is Agent Ghost-Writer 000 signing off.**


	19. Chapter 19 - Istanbul III

**A/N: Just a quick note, when I posted the last chapter, I saw for some reason it did not save a few things at the very end of the chapter, so to avoid a little confusion, I recommend reading the very last part with Link and company as well as the very very last part with Zasalamel.**

 **Also, I will take that into consideration for Chapter 5 in possibly adding some dialogue. At the time, I was under the impression samurai often battled each other without any dialogue. With that in mind, I figured Mitsurugi fit the mold and also wasn't one to prevent someone from walking away from a battle, so that's why I had no dialogue between him and Link at the time. But that's for another time. For now, here is the next chapter with the next one not far behind. Enjoy!**

 **.**

This is a sentence. - Narration. No character speaking or thinking.

"This is a sentence." - Character speaking out loud.

'This is a sentence.' - Character speaking in his/her head.

"(This is a sentence.)" - Character speaking out loud but in a language unfamiliar to the characters (and I was too lazy to research the correct wording).

This _is_ a sentence. - Emphasis placed on the italic word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

This IS a sentence. - Same as with the single italic, just a variation of expressing the emphasis.

 _This is a sentence. -_ All italics means the event is happening in a dream or flashback of which I would give a quick note prior saying a dream or flashback is occurring.

 _This_ is _a sentence_. - During a dream or flashback, emphasis placed in the normal text word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

 **.**

 **I do not own The Legend of Zelda or Soul Calibur.**

* * *

 **Chapter 19 - Istanbul III**

Everyone stayed silent as they looked at Link after suggesting they all travel together in searching for Soul Edge. He said it so casually, as if it was a normal and obvious course of action. So much so that they weren't sure they heard right.

"What did you say, Link?" Talim asked.

"Why don't we just look for Soul Edge together?" he repeated. The room was again silent for a few seconds at that before Taki spoke up.

"And why would you suggest that, Link?" Taki asked, a hint of hesitation in her tone.

"Well, we're all looking for it, right? And we each can fight and have abilities that can help each other out in case we run into trouble. Plus, there's strength in numbers as they say, so...why not?"

For a third time, the room was silent a minute at that, although for Taki, she was a little concerned where he was going with this. She supposed she shouldn't be surprised at his suggestion, as it sounded like something Link would do. And while he made good reasons for his suggestion, that wasn't enough to convince her. Although, it _was_ enough to convince someone else.

"I agree. Why don't we all go together?" Talim stated, everyone now looking at her. "Together with our combined knowledge and abilities, we would stand a better chance at finding the blade," prompting Link to smile at her, for some reason feeling particularly excited about her agreeing with him, though he wasn't sure why. One of them, however, did not agree with that sentiment.

"Uh, uh. No way. I'm not traveling with someone I don't trust. ESPECIALLY her," Yun-Seong emphasized.

"Don't be like that, Yun-Seong. She is not a threat to you or anyone else here," Talim replied, though internally she couldn't help but sigh at her friend. It seemed he was still being stubborn as always despite how Taki assisted them earlier. Was he still so blind in his beliefs?

"Hmph. Says you."

This time Talim sighed externally. "(sigh) She is _not_ an enemy, Yun-Seong. Can't you see that?"

"You know what's happening in my country!"

"That doesn't mean she is a part of it!"

Apparently so, it seemed. The other three watched as the two kept bickering back and forth, with Yun-Seong eventually standing up in the process in frustration and annoyance. Link wanted to get up to calm them down, but Taki held him back, saying to let them be a minute and wait before stepping in, while also perhaps learning something from them in the process. Link never did like fighting amongst friends, but he reluctantly obeyed as they listened as Talim kept preaching how the sword was evil and posed a danger to anyone who came near it, while Yun-Seong just shrugged it aside, stating vehemently that he would protect his country with it, looking at Taki as he stated it who simply kept her neutral expression in response. Finally, it reached the point where the arguing was too much for the other spectator of the bunch.

"Yun-Seong, that's enough, already!" That actually got Yun-Seong to stop for a moment, looking at his fellow Korean in surprise. "You're not helping here!"

"What!? Seong Mi-Na, you can't seriously be thinking of joining them!" he exclaimed to her.

"I didn't say that, Yun-Seong. I said I'm tired of you starting an argument with each other after what we all went through! Especially her!" she replied back, gesturing to Talim as she did.

"Hey, I didn't start-"

"Yes you did, and you know it. Now, be silent and SIT DOWN!", she yelled, gesturing a finger to the ground in emphasis.

That last yell got him to flinch a bit at her tone. For a moment, he was about to make a retort, but seeing the look on Seong Mi-Na's face made him think twice. He looked at Talim for a moment, whose frustrated/disappointed/upset look on her face was enough for him to finally stop, letting out a deep breath before reluctantly doing as told, crossing his arms in annoyance as he did with Talim slowly sitting down shortly afterwards. They sat in uncomfortable silence for a minute, Yun-Seong giving a frown at Seong Mi-Na before giving Taki a hard look and turning his head to the side with another "Hmph" as he did.

"I don't get it."

Everyone turned to Link at that who had suddenly spoken up, each of them blinking in brief surprise and confusion at his statement. "What do you mean, 'You don't get it?' Don't get what, exactly?" Yun-Seong asked, still in a sharp tone from earlier.

"Why do you two hate Taki-chan so much? You only just met her, right? So what did she do to you that would make you hate her so much?" he asked calmly despite the way he was talking and looking at his friend like that as it was starting to get on his nerves the way he kept treating his friend that way, but he wanted to find out where his seemingly intolerable hatred for her came from.

The two Koreans raised an eyebrow and looked at each other briefly at the "chan" part, familiar with the Japanese suffix but ignored it as Yun-Seong replied. "You must not be aware of the current war going on between our countries?" he said more as a statement than a question.

"Huh?" Link replied before looking up at Taki. "What war?"

"Their response towards me is understandable, Link," Taki stated calmly as she looked back. "For several years, now, a daimyo back home has made repeated attempts to take over their lands so as to consolidate his power."

Link's eyes widened at that as he looked at the two, who nodded in confirmation as Taki continued. "To my understanding, each attempt has been thus far pushed back, though more forces are being sent after each attempt, and so they are constantly in a state of war and unrest in their lands."

Link looked at the two Koreans with a somewhat more sympathetic look before looking back at Taki in confusion. "But why do they hate _you_ , though?"

"In their minds, I am guilty by association. Since I hail from the land attacking _their_ lands, they are naturally distrustful towards me, even if I personally have not had any part in said attacks," she explained, looking in their direction at that last part.

"And I say even if you didn't, you're still going after Soul Edge so as to allow them to take over our land!" Yun-Seong hotly declared, putting everyone on edge as it looked like this discussion was again going to get very heated very quickly. "Why else would you be after it?"

"Yun-Seong, please-" Talim started before Yun-Seong kept going.

"Or maybe enslave us? Force us to do your bidding and wipe out our culture? Our way of life?"

"Yun-Seong, stop it-"

"Isn't that what you ninja do? Kill people for money? Regardless if they did nothing to you?" he continued, by now having stood up again and slowly started walking towards Taki, who calmly watched his approach, unafraid of his actions even as he looked ready to draw his sword.

"Yun-Seong! That's enough!" Talim said sternly, but he kept going.

"Never stopping to think of the consequences? Or the families they leave behind? Of course as a ninja, family means nothing to you, right? Willing to sacrifice your own to complete a mission? In fact, it wouldn't surprise me if you killed your own fam-"

"SHE SAID THAT'S ENOUGH!"

That finally got him to stop in his tracks—along with the fist that literally knocked him off his feet. He stayed motionless on the ground for several seconds, completely caught off guard as he let out a groan, very slowly sitting himself up. He shook his head a few times, briefly wondering just what the heck it was that hit him before he looked up and widened his eyes in surprise and shock at who hit him—along with everyone else as they all looked at Link still in the follow-through position from his punch and breathing a little heavily as well, not expecting such a reaction from him. Even Taki, who was just as surprised at his actions as well as how loud Link yelled—and the fact he yelled in general.

She actually flinched slightly just from the way he yelled, having not expected such a tone (let alone a yell) to ever come from him. Sure, she'd seen him frustrated and upset at times, but never outright angry. Well, maybe that one time when she insulted him that his parents were likely worried about him and he should just go home instead of going after Soul Edge, but that was nothing compared to this.

What was equally surprising for her was for some reason she felt almost...dare she say, _flattered_ the way he stood up for her—both figuratively and literally. Where did that come from? If it was anyone else, she would have angrily blown it off and stated she could take care of herself, but for some reason she was...content in letting Link speak up for her. Why was that? Why was it so different when it was Link? Because he was her friend? Was that what it felt like when someone supported you like that...even if you didn't really ask for it? She mentally shook her head as she continued watching silently.

Link, meanwhile, had a very fierce look in his eyes as he remained in his follow-through position from the punch while still glaring at Yun-Seong. He surprised himself a bit at his actions, but that Yun-Seong had been getting on his nerves for some time now and then he went too far insulting Taki-chan like that, and that was just unacceptable to him.

"DON'T ever talk that way to Taki-chan again," he stated while pointing at him, speaking slowly in a low but very threatening tone that caused the rest of the group to shiver slightly. Even Taki felt a little chill from the way he spoke, though she wasn't sure if it was just from the tone or something else.

'Wow...Remind me not to get on Link's bad side,' the girls thought.

Yun-Seong just laid there as he looked up at Link while rubbing the spot he was punched, too stunned by the kid's actions to even speak. Plus, he moved so fast he didn't even see the punch coming!

Link slowly moved into a normal standing position as he continued. "Taki-chan is not like that. She is a very kind, caring, and respectful person even if she doesn't always show it. She even helped save your friend when she didn't have to and DESPITE any differences you may have had, but she did anyway. THAT's what kind of person she is."

That last part made him flinch slightly, and the sudden glares from his friends now looking at him made him start sweating a little. Maybe he _did_ go a bit too far, he thought guiltily. It showed on his face as it softened significantly from the earlier look he was giving Taki.

"And she doesn't take missions just for money as you claim," Link continued, getting his attention. "In fact, she hasn't accepted a mission in seven years now, as her own clan wants her dead."

Eyes widened again on the faces of Talim and even Seong Mi-Na while Yun-Seong tilted his head a bit at that as they looked at Taki. "...Your own clan wants you dead, huh?" he said in genuine surprise as he slowly stood back up, dusting himself off a little and again rubbing his forehead where Link punched him earlier. He was still rather upset about that, but given the circumstances, he decided to let it slide. "Interesting. What for? Steal from your own clan? Killed the wrong person? Or one of your own, perhaps-?"

SMACK!

"YUN-SEONG THAT'S ENOUGH!"

Although it appeared his mouth still hadn't softened enough. This time it was Seong Mi-Na that yelled at him before bashing him hard in the back of the head with the flat part of her blade, almost knocking him back down in the process.

"OW! What was that for?" he exclaimed, surprised at his friend's actions while rubbing the back of his head where she hit him, only to be further surprised when she pointed her blade at his neck.

"I'll tell you what that was for!" she started in a very angry tone. "If you can't keep that big mouth of yours shut, I'll just take the White Storm by force and leave home without you! DO YOU HEAR ME!?" she shouted in frustration. That got him to flinch at her tone and was now sweating a little more, barely letting out a surprised "What?" in response before she continued.

"You have been very rude since we have arrived here, running your mouth and getting into arguments—WITH YOUR OWN FRIEND, by the way—who just fifteen minutes ago was running for her life from dozens of thieves, WHOM YOU HELPED RESCUE HER FROM," she emphasized, "and THEN kept making accusations about someone without knowing a _thing_ about her, regardless if she happens to be from the country attacking ours, and STILL couldn't stop making insulting comments at her even after what Link said earlier! I don't want to hear it!" she added at seeing him about to retort, shutting him up again.

"Now, if you can't keep that mouth of yours shut from this point on, I WILL take the White Storm by force like I said and simply leave home without you. UNDERSTAND!?" she yelled/growled. Seriously, what was wrong with him? Was he so blind with Taki's nationality that he can't see her anything beyond an enemy? Seong Mi-Na knew her friend wasn't the smartest and sometimes had a bit of a temper on him, but this was way too much, even for him, and she wasn't going to stand it any more.

Faced with the increasingly angry look and tone of his friend, he swallowed the large lump that had been developing in his throat before nervously nodding his head yes, which calmed her down slightly as she continued.

"Now, look. I know you don't like her, but I trust him," she gestured to Link still standing before him before gesturing to Taki, "and he trusts her, so that is enough for me to...to," she trailed off, trying to think of how to put it.

"Give her the benefit of the doubt?" Link finished for her.

Seong Mi-Na looked at him in slight confusion at that. "Give her...'the benefit of the doubt?'"

Hmm, looks like he introduced another phrase to them, he thought to himself. "It basically means you do not necessarily believe or trust someone on a given issue but are willing to let it be until proven otherwise."

A thoughtful look appeared on her face for a few moments before nodding in acceptance. "Yes, I believe that would be a good way to put it," she replied before turning to Yun-Seong with a stern look again. "So let's 'give her the benefit of the doubt,' as he put it, until she proves otherwise. Alright?" she said slowly, the sharpness not lost in her tone.

Yun-Seong looked at her a bit, still surprised at her lecturing him like that as well as how she even went so far as to put her blade near his neck like that. He then looked at the others around him giving similar looks of disapproval, Talim in particular, which really hurt him on the inside. As he took the time to actually think about it a bit, though, he realized he actually was out of line...more than he'd like to admit. He felt rather disappointed with himself as it was just like when he challenged Hwang to a duel just to prove he was better, a very selfish reason especially when his country was in a state of peril. With the help of the White Storm Seong Mi-Na had lent him, he realized how foolish he was in challenging him like that, and now here he was doing the same thing, if not worse. Apparently he hadn't quite learned from it as much as he thought (though it didn't mean he still had to like the ninja woman).

Finally he let out a frustrated sigh. "Alright, fine" he grunted as he slowly moved up to sit back down but was stopped by Seong Mi-Na, who had pulled him by the back of his shirt to a standing position.

"Uh, uh," she said, shaking her head no.

"What?"

"What do you say?" she chided.

At that, Yun-Seong couldn't believe his eyes, and ears, at what Seong Mi-Na was doing, his eyes widened in disbelief at his friend's actions. "What? You can't be serious!"

"Just say it," she stated forcefully.

"Seong Mi-Na-"

"Say it!" she stated again, not taking no for an answer.

Eager to get this out of the way, Yun-Seong rolled his eyes in annoyance before replying. "(sigh) Fine, I'm sorry. Alright?" he stated impatiently, which got her to nod.

"Good. Now to them," she gestured.

Yun-Seong looked behind to the rest of the group before looking back at Seong Mi-Na, eyes widened again. "Seriously!?" he asked incredulously.

"Yes. Now do it," she replied with a no nonsense tone. "Come on, now. We haven't got all day."

The rest of the group, where before were watching their exchange in concern, now were watching in slight amusement at seeing Yun-Seong's uncomfortable look under her gaze. He looked like he was going to retort, only to be silenced by Seong Mi-Na giving him a "Do it or else you'll be sorry" look. He always hated it when someone looked at him like that, and it always seemed to come from women. Seriously, how was it females could pull off such a look with ease and allow them to get men to do what they want from it but men couldn't do the same to women? It was so unfair!

He reluctantly turned towards the group, flinching a bit as he saw the cross-armed Link still standing with that look he was giving him. It briefly made him question who had the scarier look—him or Seong Mi-Na. He hesitated a bit as he briefly looked back at Seong Mi-Na, only to get the same look as before and so decided to just get it over with. "I'm sorry...to all of you...for my earlier actions and behavior," he said very slowly, as if it pained him just to say it while giving a reluctant bow.

"And?" Seong Mi-Na added, gesturing to Taki (with Link stepping out of the way a bit so he could see her) which made him give her another pained look before turning towards Taki.

"And...for insulting you. That...was out of line," he slowly...and painfully added, but was enough to get Taki to slowly nod in acceptance.

"That's better. Now you can sit," Seong Mi-Na said with a nod, a rather satisfied look on her face after that last part as she sat down herself, Link doing the same with both looking as if all was well again. The rest of the group smiled and mentally applauded at how she got him to settle down, Taki in particular giving a slow but grateful nod to Seong Mi-Na in thanks for calming the situation, who actually gave a small smile and nod in return. Though, Yun-Seong still felt it necessary to make one last comment as he sat down.

"But just so we're clear, I still don't trust you, and I doubt anything you say will convince me otherwise," he said to Taki, crossing his arms in emphasis after sitting down.

"That is fine," she stated calmly, as if nothing happened. "You can believe whatever you wish. I do not care. If it calms your fears, neither of you nor your people are enemies of mine. Regardless of any...differences between our nations." Yun-Seong let out a scoff in disagreement but otherwise stayed quiet.

"You are right in that it is Soul Edge as the reason why Link and myself are here, though," she continued, getting their attention again. "But it is not to obtain it for the daimyo attacking your land as you suggest, or for any other daimyo for that matter, or even for ourselves."

"Hmph. For what, then? Why go after it if not for them to take over our land and get paid, or at least protect your own country with it?" Yun-Seong asked.

Taki raised an eyebrow at that last part but let it slide. "Simple. To destroy it altogether, and prevent its evil from spreading across the world."

Surprise briefly appeared on the faces of Talim, Seong Mi-Na and Yun-Seong before he scoffed. "Tch. Great, first Talim, now you, too? I never bought into it being evil or cursed as Talim claimed. How can something be 'cursed' or 'evil' when it's said to be the 'Sword of Salvation' or the 'Sword of Heroes?'"

"Regardless of the rumors regarding the sword," Talim explained, "it is indeed as I describe. You remember the poor boy that had been suffering from its energy. How do you explain that?"

"What difference does it make? You cured him from his ailment."

"That's not the point! A single shard of that blade in that village made him feel that way. How do you expect to survive a whole blade of evil energy surrounding you?"

"Enough!" Seong Mi-Na stated harshly before he could reply, getting him to slowly stop again. Seong Mi-Na took a calming breath before continuing. "Yun-Seong, I believe she is telling the truth."

A surprised but relieved look appeared on Talim's face at another believing her while a shocked look appeared on Yun-Seong's face, as she expected. "What!? How can you say that, Seong Mi-Na? Are you not also looking for it to protect our country with it? You did the last two times, last I heard."

"Not if it as evil as the old man said, and that was then, this is now. And now that she _also_ states it is evil, I am inclined to believe him. And them," she stated, glancing at Talim and Taki.

"WHAT!? This is outrageous! How can you say that?" Was she seriously taking their side on this? Including that _Taki's_ side? The thought was unbelievable to him! Then another thought came to him. "And what old man? What are you talking about?"

"Actually, I am curious about that myself," Taki calmly spoke up, hoping to avoid another argument. "What old man _are_ you referring to?"

Seong Mi-Na looked at Yun-Seong a bit, then to Taki. "Well, I met him in the Himalayan Mountains before eventually traveling here. I saw he was a fighter and challenged him to a duel before he...well, easily took me down. Despite this, he offered to train me, which he did for a few months. At one point, I was describing my travels to him while resting, and when I mentioned Soul Edge, a worried look appeared on his face and warned me not to go after it, saying the sword was evil. At first I did not believe him, but he did not seem to me someone who would just lie to me like that. You be quiet, Yun-Seong!" she replied at hearing him scoff again.

"Hmm...interesting," Taki replied. "And did he give you his name, by any chance?"

"Well, I don't know if it was his real name or a title of some kind, but he called himself 'Edgemaster.'"

"Wait, Edgemaster? THE Edgemaster?" Taki stated with widened eyes, surprising everyone at her tone, especially Link as she did not show surprise that often. Even Yun-Seong gave her a curious look.

"You know him?" Link asked.

Taki blinked a bit before shaking off her shock. "Not socially. I had only heard of him in rumors. It is said he has mastered literally every weapon style in the world. And when I mean 'every weapon style,' I mean EVERY weapon style," she emphasized. "And when I mean 'in the world,' I mean in the WORLD. Whether from Asia, Europe, Africa or beyond. He learned it and mastered it, or so it is rumored."

"Tch, I doubt that."

"Is there anything you don't doubt, Yun-Seong?" Seong Mi-Na dryly quipped.

"Hey, I'm just saying I find it hard to believe one man can somehow know _every_ fighting style out there, let alone _master_ them. It just sounds absurd."

"I admit, that it is hard to believe," Seong Mi-Na started, "but he did have me practice against like ten different types of weapons he had. Long swords, short swords, and staffs of different kinds, and he fought with them so flawlessly. I never beat him once no matter how hard I tried."

"Mm...alright fine, big deal. He knows several fighting styles. I just don't see how even if he is as she claims that he knows EVERY style out there."

"As I said, they are but rumors," Taki quickly interrupted, not wanting to see him start shouting again. "And regardless of his existence or skill, it is not relevant to the case at hand. And if you want more evidence of Soul Edge's corruption, we can enlighten you even more."

"We?" Talim asked.

"Myself...and Link," she gestured to herself and then Link, a rather sad look appearing on his face at that.

"What happened? If you don't mind me asking, that is?" Talim asked softly.

The two looked at each other a bit before Taki stated her story first, later followed by Link. The others stayed mostly silent, chiming in with a comment or question here or there (and Yun-Seong sometimes getting elbowed upon saying something rude...by both girls).

When they were done, Talim and Seong Mi-Na had softer looks on their faces, particularly towards Link, and though Yun-Seong was skeptical on some of the details, he at least kept his mouth shut about it.

Seeing Link and Taki sharing their reasons for going after Soul Edge, Talim decided to share her story with everyone. She explained how she was a wind priestess in her village and how she used her abilities to read the wind in various ways. During the incident with the Evil Seed seven years ago, she lost consciousness during due to her connection with the wind. She would recover, though, and learn how to better use her wind abilities. Then one day, a man brought what he called a "vitality charm" when it was in fact a shard of Soul Edge. Sensing the dark energy coming from it, she saw how dangerous it was and could feel its presence seeming to be all over the world, spreading its evil influence. She then resolved to return such an evil power to wherever it belonged, wherever that might be.

She started traveling the world, collecting some of the shards in the process (surprising Link and Seong Mi-Na at that fact) until she came across a village with a corrupted watermill and met a boy who was sick from its effects. She stayed with the boy, helping to cure him with her connection to the wind by channeling the evil energy into her, much to the shock of Link, Taki and Seong Mi-Na. It was a slow process, and she found herself slowly losing her connection to the wind in the process, worrying her greatly.

By then, Yun-Seong had arrived at the village by chance asking about Soul Edge. When he saw her her feeling down at the boy not being cured despite her efforts, he helped cheer her up and convince her to not give up on it, which helped give her the confidence to keep trying. That led the other three to give him a look at that.

"What?" was all he said when the other three gave him a surprised/awkward look at that fact.

She then made the suggestion to try to release the energy all at once from the boy as opposed to slowly over time. The boy did not want to do it, though, as he did not want her to suffer more than she already had for his sake, but Yun-Seong managed to convince him to go through with it using his sword, which he explained is able to reflect a person's innermost thoughts upon those who look at the blade's reflection. Link and Taki looked at each other in confusion at that, but Seong Mi-Na confirmed it was true, and so they let it go.

After the boy reflected on the sword's...reflection of his thoughts, she began the ritual and was successful in purging the both of them of the evil energy in one large burst of wind. She lost consciousness in the process, but they would both safely recover, prompting congratulations from the others which she just smiled in appreciation, particularly at Link as a light blush appeared on her face at his praise, not noticing the dirty look Yun-Seong was giving him.

Taki, however, was thinking of the possibilities of being able to purge the energy from Soul Edge out of others. It was a shame she had not been able to meet Talim months earlier. Then she could have used her abilities to possibly cure her master from his corruption. But with that no longer possible, she thought to how effective it could be in curing others, whether they were corrupted from Soul Edge itself, an oni, or something else.

'Or perhaps cure a corrupted blade,' she thought as she thought back to her Mekki-Maru. Could she purge it with her abilities? It was a rather inviting thought, though she wouldn't want the girl to be hurt in the process or overtax herself in doing so. And then there was the fact she detected the shards on them despite the seal placed on the box storing their shards. And the fact said box was itself sealed in Link's mystery pouch, as she called it. Not only could she feel Soul Edge from that, but she could also feel it all over the world? That would prove to be a very useful ability. Even Taki's ability to sense Soul Edge was not _that_ good. Link's suggestion of joining up, at least with Talim, suddenly seemed less farfetched, she thought.

Talim then finished with how she later met Yun-Seong again after they had initially parted ways at the village. With the wind guiding them, their journey took them all the way to Egypt before the wind then guided them north to Istanbul where they eventually met up with everyone present.

When asked what took them to Egypt, Talim explained the ancient temple they found, much to Yun-Seong objections in sharing that information with Taki but was silenced by Talim and Seong Mi-Na. He was starting to get annoyed by them constantly joining up against him.

They listened in fascination to the tragic story of the Hero King and his son that they had learned while they were there. While Link and Seong Mi-Na had sad looks on their faces at the story, Taki had a more thoughtful look on her face as she processed what she learned, a look that did not go unnoticed.

"Something on your mind, Taki-chan?"

Taki looked up at Link, who was looking at her curiously. "Just thinking on this story and its possible connection to Soul Edge."

"What do you think? Do you think it's true?"

She put a hand up to her chin as she went into a thinking mode. "Well, rumors and stories are usually based on truths in some way, but given the way it was described, it sounds very much plausible. And while it does not actually state the sword was Soul Edge, I personally believe that it is and there is at least some truth to the story. Though I am not sure how it assists us in any way."

"Likewise," said Yun-Seong, for once agreeing with the ninja woman. "So what, now? I'm still not going to join these two."

A look of disappointment adorned Talim's face, as well as Link's at that. Did he really think Taki was still untrustworthy?

"I am also not sure on that," Seong Mi-Na stated, getting everyone's attention before looking at Taki. "Don't get me wrong, for me I no longer consider you an enemy, as Link is right. It was wrong of me to associate you with those attacking our country when you had nothing to do with it...and I apologize for any misgivings towards you earlier," she said softly, giving her a bow after speaking, much to her friend's shock.

Taki stayed her expression, but inwardly was appreciative of the young woman's actions and gave a bow in return. "Apology accepted. No hard feelings," she replied, a brief smile on Seong Mi-Na's face at that before she continued.

"But despite this, I am only here to retrieve our family heirloom, not find Soul Edge. Which would mean bringing _you_ back with me as well," she said as she looked back at Yun-Seong, who was not happy with that declaration.

"Uh, uh. Not going to happen. Not until I find Soul Edge first."

"It's not worth it, Yun-Seong."

"Ugh, will you girls just drop it already? Nothing anyone says is going to stop me from going after it. And no one _here_ is going to stop me either."

Everyone frowned at his comments (and attitude). It seemed like he was unable to listen to reason or believe the mounting evidence against him regarding Soul Edge's nature. Link in particular was trying to think of some way to get him to see how Soul Edge was evil and how its power was not worth protecting one's country with it. It somewhat reminded him of the Hundred-Year War in Hyrule, or rather _why_ the war was fought.

The many races of Hyrule, minus the Kokiri, fought each other for a hundred years, each accusing the other of having the legendary Triforce when in fact NO ONE did. He wondered what would have happened if one side DID, in fact, have the Triforce and how the war would have played out. Suddenly, his eyes widened, as if a light bulb went off in his head, as he heard someone put it, as an idea came to him. He thought it over to himself for a bit before speaking.

"Let me ask you this, Yun-Seong," Link started, getting his attention.

"Uh, huh. And what's that, kid?" he replied in an annoyed, disinterest tone.

Ignoring the "kid" comment, Link continued. "Say you succeed. You obtain Soul Edge and bring it home with you. Then what?"

"Then I would use its power to protect my country and drive my enemies out, like I said. _For good_ ," he emphasized.

"And how would you do that, exactly?"

"How? I would wipe out so much of my enemies with it in battle that they would be too scared to ever mount an attack again!" he declared, making a gesture with his fist as he did.

"Then what?"

"I...what?"

That last question actually seemed to catch him off-guard, which was what Link was hoping for as he continued. "After ensuring no one in Japan ever attacks your home again, then what would you do?"

"I, uh...," was what he replied with, blinking his eyes a bit as he was unable to come up with an initial response. "Then...I guess I would just live my life like normal. Without all the constant fighting and war," he replied a bit hesitantly. "Why?" he finally asked, wondering where the kid was going with this.

"Do you really think everything will go back to normal after defeating your enemies with Soul Edge?"

Yun-Seong gave a confused, almost incredulous look at that before replying. "Well, _of course_ it would go back to normal as no one would then be invading my country."

"...Are you sure?" Link asked slowly, as if hinting something to him, but he did not pick up on it and merely started getting annoyed.

"Yes I'm sure! Why? Just what are you getting at, kid?"

"Well, let me ask you this. If it becomes known that it was now YOUR land that had Soul Edge, what would happen then?"

Outwardly, Taki merely shifted her head slightly, but inwardly she was very intrigued at where he was going with this, while also wondering to herself why she hadn't thought of that earlier. Similar intrigued looks adorned the faces of Talim and Seong Mi-Na as they looked expectantly at Yun-Seong, who still wasn't quite getting what he was asking.

"So what if they knew? What difference would it make if my enemies knew I had Soul Edge?"

"I don't mean just Japan. What about all the other nations? Like China? Or India? Or the rest of the world? What do you think would happen if suddenly THEY all knew your country had Soul Edge? Do you really think they would all just stay away?"

"Of-Of course!" he stated, but with noticeably less confidence in his tone. "If they knew I had Soul Edge, they would be...too afraid to come after it."

Link noticed his hesitation at the end, prompting him to continue. "Really? With all the vast empires in the world, do you really think none of them would have the confidence to try taking Soul Edge from you?"

Link could see that Yun-Seong was starting to realize he was losing this argument as he would open his mouth a few times to reply but nothing came out. He then turned to Seong Mi-Na. "What about you, Seong Mi-Na? Do YOU think the world would just leave your nation alone if they knew you had Soul Edge?"

Seong Mi-Na, who until now had been silently reflecting over Link's words, looked over in thought at his question before shaking her head. "No, I do not. In fact, I...think they would not leave us alone," she said slowly as realization started to show on her face.

"Exactly. Plus, look at us. Here we all are from different lands following mere _rumors_ of the blade way out here in Europe. Did its rumored power and stories prevent us from coming all this way in search of it? Even if for different reasons?"

Once again, Yun-Seong was silent. The hotheaded, brash Yun-Seong who almost always had something to say...was being humbled by an even younger boy in green. A part of him was greatly annoyed at that fact, and yet he found himself unable to retort back.

"And that's my point," Link continued, getting his attention again. "If the whole world knew your country now had Soul Edge, they would not just stand idly by, or just send a few people to try to obtain it. They would send _armies._ Some of them with tens or maybe even over a _hundred_ thousand soldiers. They would all continue to invade your land until the sword was theirs. Do you really think you could defend against that many? Even with Soul Edge?" He paused to let that sink in before continuing. "And even if you DID somehow manage to continue fending them off, do you really think they would eventually stop?" Link paused again, letting it sink in several moments before continuing. "No, the invasions would just keep on coming for years to come. One attack after another. Week after week, year after year. Never letting your people rest, even for a moment...Is that what you want?"

Everyone was now looking at Yun-Seong expectantly, while also holding a bit of admiration at Link. The way he talked was not one would expect from someone his age as he seemed unusually insightful. Was he learning to be a scholar or something? Even Taki, who knew of his time as an adult, was very impressed with him as even wise men five times his age—whether as a teenager or as an adult—have not been as profound. It never ceased to amaze her just what Link could do.

Now if he could just share his little secret regarding his "mystery pouch," she thought to herself.

"I...hadn't really thought that," Yun-Seong finally said, finding himself at a rare loss for words. He had to admit, if all nations knew he and his land had the sword, it would only make sense for them to start coming after them. But if they tried attacking even just once, he would fight them off and then they would be too afraid to challenge them again...right? Even WITH their massive armies as Link said. Armies with tens of thousands of soldiers...each.

Or maybe over a _hundred_ thousand...each. Attacking a relatively small nation. Surrounded on three sides by water. And by multiple nations...possibly at once.

He stayed silent as he thought this over in his head. And the more he thought about it, the more and more the possible dangers of invasions grew in his mind. After a few minutes, he finally stood up. "I'm going out for a while."

His sudden declaration made his friends a little concerned for him. "Is everything alright, Yun-Seong?" Seong Mi-Na asked worriedly.

"I'm fine. I just...need time to think. I'll be back later."

"Are you sure-?"

"That is fine, Yun-Seong. Just don't take too long," Talim interrupted, giving a look to Seong Mi-Na, who reluctantly stayed silent.

Yun-Seong nodded before proceeding out and closing the door, leaving the four of them to themselves. Shortly after he left, Seong Mi-Na then turned to Talim.

"Are you sure he'll be alright?"

"I don't think you need to worry. I think he finally is beginning to see the folly in searching for Soul Edge, at least for the reasons he had been giving. Just give him time." Talim then turned to Link. "And thank you for being able to talk some sense into him," she said with a light bow, which made Link blush a little at the praise. "I know he can be quite a handful at times."

"I'll say!" Seong Mi-Na exclaimed. "I usually have to literally _beat_ some sense into him as well, as you saw earlier," she commented, which drew a few laughs from the group (Taki staying silent as usual).

"He...won't be too mad at me, will he?" Link asked hesitantly. Despite the way Yun-Seong talked about his friend, he still felt a little bad at punching him. Not even to Mido had he ever done anything like that...no matter how often he wanted to. Just what made him snap like that?

"Aw, don't worry about it, Link," Seong Mi-Na waved off. "It's not the first time he's made a fool of himself. He'll get over it...eventually." Link wasn't sure if that made him feel better or not, but he let it drop. "By the way, just where did you learn to talk like that, Link? And can you teach me how to do that? That way I don't have to keep bashing his skull to get him to listen?" she laughed.

"(giggles) I must admit, I too, am very interested. Where _did_ you learn that?" Talim asked him.

"Was it that 'Great Deku' you mentioned earlier?"

"Or maybe that 'Impa' woman? She sounded pretty smart. Or that 'Rauru?' sage?"

"And what other magic tricks can you do? Anything else you can suddenly make appear you can show us?"

"Pleeease?"

Link suddenly felt a little flattered/embarrassed by the girls' sudden questions, and that last part by Talim made it hard for him to say no. The way they were asking him made his cheeks redden a bit, and the fact they both sat down rather close to him didn't help, either. He glanced at Taki for help who merely shrugged and turned so she was now facing and surrounding him too, although he didn't miss the light smirk on her face.

"I, too, am a bit curious, as you still haven't shown me the secret of your little 'mystery pouch.' We've known each other for months now, and you still don't trust me?" she asked in faux anger, putting her hands on her hips for emphasis.

"Well, that's not very nice. I'm surprised at you, Link," Seong Mi-Na stated in a similar manner she spoke with Yun-Seong.

Link, however, was very much surprised as he looked at Seong Mi-Na at that before looking at Taki. "What? But you said-"

"You mean you really _don't_ trust her, Link?" Talim interrupted in a sad, pouting way.

"I thought she was your friend?" Seong Mi-Na added.

"Can't you show us, Link? Pleeease?" Talim asked with a very innocent tone and puppy dog-eyed look that Link couldn't help but give in to.

It was moments like this just made him helpless before girls, and he could never figure out why. He looked back at Taki for help, but to his surprise, he couldn't help but notice she was trying hard not to smile...Wait, was she enjoying this!?

Yes, yes she was. Seeing Link squirm like that was very satisfying to her. After all the times he had tricked her, it was nice to get a little payback. Plus, he looked rather kawaii when he was embarrassed like that-

'What the...did I seriously just think that!? Ugh, what is wrong with me?' she thought to herself. She had been noticing such unusual thoughts popping into her head every now and then, and every time it was related to Link that made her think that way. Was this a side effect of accepting someone as a friend, she thought?

The other girls, meanwhile, couldn't help but gush internally at Link's nervousness at them. He just looked so adorably cute! And after Talim's "Pleeease" request, Seong Mi-Na couldn't help but say it, too.

"Come on, Link. Pleeease?" Seong Mi-Na echoed with a similar tone and puppy dog-eyed look.

That finally did it as Link cracked under the pressure. "Alright, alright!" he said hastily.

"Yay!" the two girls squealed in delight.

'This might be a long day...' he thought ruefully to himself. It was only when he caught a glimpse of Taki and her smiling face did he realize what she had done. 'Why that dirty...she tricked me!' he exclaimed to himself, which just made Taki smirk even more when she saw the realization flash across his face.

'Payback is sweet indeed,' she said to herself as she silently continued watching Link's discomfort with unabashed glee.

* * *

Yun-Seong had been walking for some time now, not really having a destination in mind as he wandered aimlessly. Some people gave him passing glances, as most had never seen someone of his nationality before, but he paid them no mind as he kept walking, his thoughts focused on the young kid's words.

He wanted to say, "Ah, what did he know? He's just a kid," but he found himself unable to ignore his words. He had to admit, the idea of armies constantly attacking his home for Soul Edge did not sound appealing. He felt confident that he could defeat them all with Soul Edge, and he tried to reason that showing his might with Soul Edge would convince the rest of the world it was foolish to try and come after it.

But...would that really be enough? Would that really be enough to scare them into attacking again? Or would they just eventually send one large army as an all or nothing assault? Would he be able to handle that sort of attack? And even if could, what if another large army from another nation suddenly attacks right after-

"OOF!"

He was suddenly interrupted from his thoughts when he was abruptly knocked down from behind and felt someone landing on top of him. "What the-?"

"I got it! Come on!"

He felt the sudden weight lifted off of him, and he looked up to see what appeared to be two kids running away from him, one of them holding what looked to be-

His eyes widened as he checked his person, only to confirm his sword was indeed missing.

"Hey! Come back here with my sword!" he shouted as he got up and started giving chase. "Ugh, first the masked ones, now the little ones. I'm sick of thieves!" he muttered to himself as he followed them down the street, trying to avoid the people walking by but occasionally pushed some aside in his haste.

He saw them turn the corner, and he followed suit, briefly pausing in the middle of the street to see where they went before spotting them again. "There you are! Give me back me sword, you little brats!"

He continued chasing them for another minute before they entered into an alley. He pursued them, only to quickly halt in his tracks when he found his own sword pointed against him by one of the kids, who had unsheathed it and turned around to face him with it.

"S-Stay back. I'm warning you," he replied, though it was clear to Yun-Seong he was in over his head. Like he had never down this before, his friend standing close behind him who looked just as nervous. Still, he put his hands up in a placating gesture, trying not to frighten them more.

"Easy, kid. Don't be doing something stupid," he said while slowly approaching the kids, not really worried or intimidated despite his situation.

"Just...stay back!" the one with the sword cried, the two slowly backing up in response.

"Come on, now," he stated as he kept moving forward, though he stopped at seeing him point the sword closer to him. "Look. I know you don't want to do this, and I can tell you it's just not worth it. Just give me my sword back, and I'll forget this ever happened. Agreed?"

The other one looked like he was willing to accept that as he addressed his friend. "M-Maybe we should do what he says."

"Quiet! Just...let us go!"

"Like I said, you just give me back my sword, and we'll forget this ever happened. Alright?"

At first it looked like he was going to do just that, but then he quickly turned around and ran. "Come on!" he shouted to his friend. However, his friend did not to follow him. Instead, he just watched him a couple seconds before looking at Yun-Seong, then at the ground before sighing and gesturing to Yun-Seong in resignation to go after him, as if he had enough. Yun-Seong gave him a look as he slowly passed him, still upset at him for helping to steal his sword, but he shoved that aside as he kept running.

However, he did not have far to run as shortly after he turned the corner where the thief ran, he saw the boy trip up ahead by what appeared to be a local who stuck his foot out, the sword dropping to the ground ahead and away from the boy several feet. As Yun-Seong approached, he slowed down in confusion as the local then stood in between the kid and the sword. The kid shook his head a bit before he looked for the sword. He spotted it—only to see someone in between it and him. He nervously looked up at the one who tripped him, who merely glared back down at him. It was then he realized he was finally out of luck.

Seeing another alley not blocked off, he got to his feet as quickly as he could and ran off—without the sword. Normally, Yun-Seong would have gone after him, but he decided to let it be and focused on the stranger in front of him, who also did not pursue and instead turned around and leaned down to pick up the dropped sword, his back facing Yun-Seong.

He watched as the white-hooded figure seemed to admire it in fascination a bit as he stood up, which only made him wonder if he was going to simply give it back or if he now had to fight _him_ for it. He did notice how he was admiring his reflection in the blade and seemed to be muttering something to himself, though he couldn't hear what he was saying and didn't appear to be a language he knew. After half a minute of this, Yun-Seong decided to speak up.

"Hey, uh, thanks for stopping him and all, but, can I have my sword back, now?"

That seemed to wake him up as he slowly turned around, though his upper face was still hidden beneath his hood. "My apologies. I was admiring your blade and got lost in my thoughts. Here you go," he replied before gently offering it back to him.

"Thanks," Yun-Seong replied, a satisfied look at getting his sword back as he looked it over.

"You still look troubled, young one. Something on your mind?"

Yun-Seong was surprised at the man still addressing him as he looked back at him. "What makes you think I am troubled?" he asked somewhat suspiciously.

"I can see it in your eyes. You have the look of someone who is unsure of himself, as if his beliefs have been put into question and now is not sure what course of action to take. I have seen it many times. Sometimes when I look in the mirror," he joked to himself.

Yun-Seong stayed silent at that. Normally, he would retort at something like that, but he wasn't in the mood. Since he did help him get his sword back, though, he decided to humor him. "You could say that," he said slowly as he picked up the sheath the kid had also dropped.

"Anything you want to discuss?"

"Uh, not with a stranger I just met...even though you did help me out."

"True..." the stranger shrugged in acceptance, "nonetheless, I am willing to lend an ear if you otherwise had no one else to talk to."

Yun-Seong looked at him for a bit, contemplating what to do before shrugging and decided to enlighten him a bit. "Well, I'm...searching for something in these lands. I have been looking for it for awhile, now. It would greatly help my country in its...current struggles if it was in our possession, but now I'm starting to wonder if it is worth it. That if I find it and bring it home, then it would actually bring MORE, uh, struggles to my people," he said, selecting his words very carefully and not mention Soul Edge like he normally would.

"Hmm...I can see you are not wanting to give out too much. That is understandable, as it must be a sensitive discussion for you," he replied before continuing. "Well, suppose after you solve your country's current...struggles, as you put it, with this object you are looking for, you simply give it away to someone else? Perhaps sell it for a good sum of money?"

That got Yun-Seong to tilt his head in curiosity at that as he thought it over. "Hmm...no, I do not think that would work as the person I would give or sell it to could then later use it against me and my people."

"I see...Well, then what if you destroyed it as soon as its usefulness was over? That way no one home could be affected by it or used against you from that point on?"

Yun-Seong's eyes widened at that. That...actually seemed like a good idea. If he brought it home to stop the current invasions, and when he felt confident his country didn't need it anymore, then he could have it destroyed...but would his people be willing to go along with that? Hmm, maybe he could get Seong Mi-Na to help with that. Maybe even Hwang, as strange as it was for him to think that.

He then turned to his sword, staring at his reflection like he had done before in situations like this. As he continued looking at his reflection, he silently watched as its magic took effect while he thought of his prior conversations, including with his friends—and that Link and ninja woman—as well as the recent one with the stranger. He had to admit he was rather surprised at what he was seeing reflected back at him, though not necessarily disappointed as he kept tilting his head slightly at what he was seeing.

He had been gazing at it for some time before the stranger coughed to get his attention again. He suddenly felt a little embarrassed at spacing off in front of him like that. "Uh, hehe. Sorry about that," he said sheepishly while finally sheathing his sword.

"Ha-ha, no worries," the stranger laughed. "I did notice the wheels seemed to be turning in your head, if you will, as you were looking at your reflection. _That_ is the look of someone who feels they may have discovered the solution he has been seeking."

"You know...maybe I do," he trailed off, looking to the side as he did.

"I often find looking at one's self in the mirror can sometimes help. Or in this case, your sword," he joked. "I have to admit it had an unusually reflective surface when I was looking at it," he commented, which actually brought a small chuckle out of Yun-Seong.

"Heh, yes it does, doesn't it?" he replied, while internally commenting 'You have no idea,' to himself.

"Well, I shall leave you to your thoughts. Take care, young man," he stated before calmly walking away.

"Uh, right, you too. And thanks again for your help," he shouted as he left, the stranger waving a hand in reply as he kept walking forward.

"What a strange man," he said to himself. It was only when he left did he think to ask what the stranger saw in his reflection while looking at his sword, but he shrugged it off. Oh, well. He then saw the setting sun and realized he was out later than he thought. "I better get back. Last thing I need are two angry women breathing down my neck...or hitting me in the back of the head again," he added, rubbing it a bit before running back to the inn.

* * *

Zasalamel smiled darkly to himself as he parted with the Korean, pleased with what had occurred. It actually went better than he thought, particularly with the conversation he had with him. He did not initially plan that, but he saw an opportunity present itself from it, and now he was glad that he did. As he thought about it, he almost felt he didn't need to use his magic as his words alone may had been enough to convince him.

'But, can't be too careful,' he thought. After walking a bit, he headed into another alley, where he then saw the two boys from earlier that took the Korean's sword, who nervously stood at attention upon seeing him.

"Um...did we do what we wanted you to, sir?" one of them asked timidly.

"Yes. Everything went exactly as planned."

"But...you don't have the sword," the other boy stated upon not seeing it on him.

"I merely needed to look at it, not steal it. Now, here is your reward as promised," he said before handing them both a small bag with coins in them. One of them turned to walk a way while the other was still hesitant.

"I don't know about this...it doesn't feel right."

"I know it was likely a little uncomfortable for you," Zasalamel said softly, "but no one was harmed. Not much, anyway. And nothing was really stolen, and you now have extra money for your families."

"I know, but...still..."

"Well if you prefer, I could alert the police as they are still likely looking for you after the cries of theft from earlier," he added with a soft yet threatening tone.

"No-No need! Come on," his friend urged, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Let's get out of here before someone sees us."

That was enough to get the two to leave as they spared him one last look before quickly running away from him. "Hmph. It's amazing how two mere children were far more useful than forty adult thieves," Zasalamel mused before turning to leave himself. If his plan worked as he thought, he could at least help minimize the damage from his latest plan's failure and make it at least a little easier to accomplish what he had planned.

"We'll just have to see how well it really worked," he said to himself as he disappeared into the city.

* * *

 **A/N:** **Merry Christmas! I thought about continuing on, but thought this would be a nice place to stop, though admittingly this Istanbul section took longer than I thought. I'll have the next chapter posted in the next day or so.**

 **I particularly had trouble portraying Yun-Seong. I tried to give the impression he is ultimately good-hearted but still had a bit of prejudice towards those of Japanese descent, in this case Taki, given the state of affairs between the two nations at the time. If he sounded particularly harsh even for him, keep in mind America had a similar attitude towards the Japanese in WWII, going so far as to put them in concentration camps their fear was so great, and a similar attitude persists today towards Muslims—letting the actions of a few define the many.**

 **I thought of like having the SC characters meet in like a tournament or have a random thief steal shards of Soul Edge from Talim before eventually meeting Link, but then I wasn't sure how to introduce Seong Mi-Na as in canon she met Talim and Yun-Seong in Istanbul, s** **o I decided to ultimately use the Assassin character hired by Zasalamel to get them all to meet.**

 **I was not expecting to showcase the diplomatic skills Link showed with Setsuka, but then I was asking myself a what-if scenario of what would happen if it was KNOWN a country had the sword as opposed to just RUMORED? And that eventually led to me having Link bring that up to help persuade Yun-Seong not to go after Soul Edge. Hope it didn't detract from the story too much.**

 **But with all said and done, Zasalamel has made yet another move. But just what did he do? And how will it affect Yun-Seong? And the rest of the group?**

 **Find out next time when they leave Istanbul. But...will they all be traveling together? Stay tuned!**

 **For now, this is Agent Ghost-Writer 000 signing off.**


	20. Chapter 20 - Next Moves & Moving Forward

**A/N: As promised, here is the second chapter in this set of updates. Enjoy!**

 **.**

This is a sentence. - Narration. No character speaking or thinking.

"This is a sentence." - Character speaking out loud.

'This is a sentence.' - Character speaking in his/her head.

"(This is a sentence.)" - Character speaking out loud but in a language unfamiliar to the characters (and I was too lazy to research the correct wording).

This _is_ a sentence. - Emphasis placed on the italic word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

This IS a sentence. - Same as with the single italic, just a variation of expressing the emphasis.

 _This is a sentence. -_ All italics means the event is happening in a dream or flashback of which I would give a quick note prior saying a dream or flashback is occurring.

 _This_ is _a sentence_. - During a dream or flashback, emphasis placed in the normal text word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

 **.**

 **I do not own The Legend of Zelda or Soul Calibur.**

* * *

 **Chapter 20 - Next Moves and Moving Forward**

When Yun-Seong got back to the room, he paused at the strange sight before him. Link was playing a musical instrument of some kind with all three girls surrounding him, watching him play in fascination. Well, Talim and Seong Mi-Na looked to be anyway. Taki looked more reserved, but was watching him nonetheless until he stepped in, though Talim and Seong Mi-Na stayed as they were, watching Link until he finished his song. He didn't know why, but that Link kid rubbed him the wrong way. The way his friends looked at him like that just seemed to set him on fire. Them clapping for him after he played didn't help matters. Finally, Link noticed him and waved at him.

"Hey, Yun-Seong," he greeted.

"Yun-Seong! Welcome back!" Talim also greeted, rather cheerfully he noticed, which was enough to put a little smile on his face.

"Heh. Did you miss me?" he replied, which made her giggle a little.

"We had Link to keep us company. He is quite talented," she replied.

"Indeed. You missed quite a show," Seong Mi-Na added.

"I see..." he said slowly, his sour mood returning a little.

"Did you have a good walk?" Talim asked.

"...You could say that," Yun-Seong slowly replied with a shrug.

"Anything exciting happen? Didn't get into any trouble, now, did you?" Seong Mi-Na jested.

"Heh, since when do I get into trouble? Wait...don't answer that," he said suddenly when he saw Seong Mi-Na about to reply, who decided to merely smirk at him instead. Last thing he needed was her embarrassing him again.

"It is quite late. I suggest we all have dinner, and for those of us that have not already checked in to do so before they fill up," Taki suggested. As if on cue, Link's stomach growled in hunger, making the other girls laugh at his expense as he started turning red.

* * *

When they moved to check in, there were two additional rooms left, which had them discuss who should sleep where. After a brief discussion, it was decided Seong Mi-Na would share her room with Talim, Link and Taki would share a room while Yun-Seong would get his own—at his insistence, as he did not trust Taki. He also insisted, rather angrily, that he pay for his own room when Link offered to pay for it, saying he could take care of himself.

Dinner went without much incident. The conversation mainly centered at where everyone was from and how Link and Taki met, though Taki mainly stayed quiet, only speaking when directly spoken to and only in short sentences. Although she did get annoyed when Link brought up the horse incident, which led her to sharing the camel incident in retaliation, both of which bringing laughs from the other three.

Even Yun-Seong gave an amused snort at that. Although the girls noticed he wasn't as talkative as he usually was. When asked, he said he was still thinking about their conversation earlier, and so they let it go, although Taki still made note of that.

Finally, they decided would meet up downstairs in the morning and see where everyone stood from there before they all went to their rooms for the night. Though when Link and Taki got to theirs, Link couldn't help but think back to an incident that had been bugging him after Yun-Seong left briefly.

"That was really mean earlier, Taki-chan."

"What do you mean, Link?" she asked as if confused, but Link was not fooled.

"Don't give me that. What you did with the girls about my Sheikah Scroll. That was so unfair," he replied bitterly, even crossing his arms at her in a pout, which all it did was make her smirk.

"I'm a ninja, Link. Ninja do not play fair," she replied, as if that should be obvious to him, which just made him grunt annoyingly. "Consider it a lesson: Do not allow yourself to be influenced by feminine charm. Or guilt in this case," she added offhandedly with a shrug, still smirking at him. Oh, the look on his face was just priceless the way Talim and Seong Mi-Na made him look so guilty into sharing his secret. Even moreso when Link later realized he had been tricked, which just made her smile even more. She was just _waiting_ for an opportunity to present itself to learn his secret, and it finally did in the form of Talim and Seong Mi-Na and his apparent weakness to girls.

She had to admit, a part of her was somewhat upset he was willing to share his secret with them after just meeting them versus months knowing her, but she shoved that aside as she reveled (for her) in victory over Link. Taki considered herself having a good judgment of character—first impressions of Link not withstanding—and she felt the other girls would pose little to no risk in sharing the secret with them—though that didn't mean she was willing to share everything, like the details on Link's origins.

Link just gave her an annoyed look at that before getting ready for bed. He was _definitely_ going to have to get her back for that. He just couldn't help it! The way girls asked and looked at him the way they did was like the girls back home when they wanted him to do something for him, like help retrieve something they needed or lost, or tell them a story of his adventures, or play a song for them. And every time, he just couldn't find it in himself to say no to them, afraid of making them sad and hurting their feelings or otherwise feel guilty at not helping them. Though after Taki's dirty trick, he was starting to wonder if the OTHER girls who did that to him were also just tricking him? Maybe deep down they were downright evil tricksters, he thought, as he got in bed.

"Now then, there was something else I wanted to discuss before we call it a night," Taki started, getting his attention. "It relates to our next move in the morning, after this unexpected development in Istanbul. Particularly, the three people we met of possibly joining us."

"Do you think they will?"

"That is what I wanted to discuss. I am not entirely positive it would be wise for them to join us." THAT surprised Link.

"What? Why not?"

"Searching for Soul Edge is not something to take lightly when discussing it with someone else. You cannot just make an offer to have someone join us in looking for it even if we have acquainted with them in a friendly manner."

"Wh-What do you mean?"

"You made an offer without fully determining if they were trustworthy, OR consulting with me to determine if it was a wise decision," she said sternly, as if lecturing a student.

"But...you heard what Talim said. And Seong Mi-Na, too-"

"Only AFTER speaking with them," Taki interrupted. "And even then, Seong Mi-Na has a different priority and Yun-Seong's motives are not as aligned as ours, as well as not trusting towards me."

"Yet," Link interjected, getting her to pause as they looked at each other in a somewhat challenging way but lacking animosity between them.

"I'll admit you got him to think about his intentions," she said slowly, "a rather impressive feat given his...fiery personality. That being said, it is no guarantee he will decide to follow the same path as us, and if he were to travel with us, it could create more conflict between us. Likely...physical, like with before," she added, making Link flinch a little at that.

"...It doesn't mean he won't be willing to come with us."

"It doesn't mean he _will_ either. And if he does, and he still chooses to take the sword with him should he find it, what would eventually happen should we reach that point?"

Link was silent at that. Assuming Yun-Seong still wanted to bring Soul Edge back with him, it _would_ result in conflict between them. They would likely have to fight him to prevent him from taking the sword, which would make destroying it much harder to do. Link had to admit, he didn't quite think that part through.

"And also, did you forget that the Fu-Ma are still after us?" Taki continued. "Did you not think that would be something they should know prior to making such a decision?"

"But...we DID tell them about that. When you described your story, remember?"

"Again, only AFTER making the offer. Do you not think it would have been more prudent to inform them beforehand?"

Link was about to retort before his eyes widened in realization, a pang of guilt flashing across his face at that. That actually WOULD be something one would want to know prior to joining someone. Taki once mentioned on the ship that the Fu-Ma, though they escaped from them, could still very well track them to Europe, even if would take them awhile, and so they should always keep that thought in the back of their minds. It looked like that advice was thrown out the window in this case, Taki thought in disappointment. She could tell from Link's reaction, though, that it seemed it was finally sinking in for him. Good. He acknowledges his mistake. That's what she was looking for, feeling a little more satisfied with his acknowledgement.

"And in any case, that is besides the point," Taki continued, getting his attention.

"What do you mean?" Link asked in slight confusion.

"Since our conversation with them, I also had been thinking over the possibility idea of joining forces in finding Soul Edge, particularly with Talim given her sensing abilities with the wind. It DOES indeed seem practical for her to come with us, and she too is agreeing in that the sword is evil and should be destroyed. Seong Mi-Na also agrees, though I am not sure if she will given her intention to retrieve her family heirloom. Yun-Seong is the one who could cause issues depending on his decision. But whether he does or doesn't, my point is I do not like how you made the offer for them to join us _before_ truly finding out if they could be trusted to join us, and most importantly, _before_ asking for my input."

A somewhat regretful frown adorned Link's face as he saw what she was getting at as she continued. "We are partners, are we not?" she asked. Link hesitated but gave a slow nod in reply. "Then..." she started, her expression softening considerably, "I merely ask to be treated as such when making decisions in the future. Especially when it comes to major decisions like this."

Link looked back, a look of understanding and acceptance of his actions. He had to admit, he wouldn't want anyone to make a decision he didn't want to do. Heck, Mido did that a lot to him growing up, and it never ended well for Link.

But then he thought to what Taki said about them being _partners_. She called them _partners_. Like they both had equal say in something. Despite the fact she was much older than him. That meant being... _equal_ with her. And not just that, but she treated him as an adult. Not as a simple kid, but as an _adult_. That brought a small smile on his face as he nodded to her. "You're right. I should have asked you before making the offer for them to join us. Gomen," he said with a deep bow. Seeing this acknowledgement, Taki gave a bow in return.

"Apology accepted, Link," she replied, which made him smile, glad she had forgiven him.

"And you're right, we _are_ partners. And...I'll make sure to treat you as such from here on...partner," he said as he extended a hand towards her.

A brief smile appeared on her face before nodding and shaking his hand. "That is all I ask...partner," she replied.

The two shared a smile at that before deciding to turn out the light, a smile still on Link's face after solidifying his friendship with Taki as he went sleep.

* * *

Yun-Seong was alone in his room, still awake in the night as he looked out his window. Link's words still had an effect on him, but so did that stranger's words he met after helping retrieve his sword. He wanted to protect his country, but he didn't want to have to do nothing BUT protect his country if the world converged on his home for Soul Edge. Of course, that's assuming that would happen in the first place. Would that really happen as Link stated? Seong Mi-Na seemed to agree with him as well, and she was the one to mention the countries not leaving them alone if they had Soul Edge. But after repelling the Japanese invaders, he could just destroy the sword like the stranger suggested. And that way, the world would not come after them in pursuit of the sword, and by then the Japanese would be too depleted in forces to attack again. Problem solved...right?

However, he wasn't so sure, hence why he couldn't sleep. Just what should he do? If he simply went home empty handed, it would have all been for nothing. He would likely lose any chance of fighting in the army for his failure and be humiliated in disgrace from his superiors, including Seong Mi-Na's father at the dojo, whom he respected most, for taking the White Storm on his journey without permission. But if he brought Soul Edge back, he could risk bringing the rest of the world with him. Just what should he do?

Unable to come up with an answer, he finally decided to turn to his sword. Contrary to what others might think, he did not look at it on a daily basis to use its reflective properties. In fact, he only did so once, and that was when Seong Mi-Na lent it to him when she saw how down he was at not being able to fight Hwang in a duel. After that, he never really felt the need, but after today, he felt now was as good as time as any to help get his thoughts straight.

He unsheathed his sword and went to light a candle. He silently gazed at his sword as it started showing images of himself based on his thoughts. Strange, it seemed to be acting rather unusual in what he was seeing, but he watched on. He frowned at seeing said boy being idolized by Talim and Seong Mi-Na as they held onto Link.

Link. For some reason that boy lit a fire in him...maybe that punch from earlier had something to do with it? And it was almost as if he was...taking them away from him? Just what did he have that Yun-Seong didn't? And for that matter, why did he feel that way to begin with?

The image then showed Yun-Seong coming in, and as soon as the girls see him, they leave Link behind and are now holding onto _him_. Well, that's more like it. HE has the girls instead of Link...wait, just why would he think that? And what does that mean regarding Talim and Seong Mi-Na? He looked closer and saw he was now holding what appeared to be a large sword in his hand, but it wasn't White Storm he was holding. It was much larger and seemed to exude an aura of power, FAR exceeding what White Storm could do...

'Wait, is that Soul Edge!?' he thought.

Before he could process it further, it then showed the dojo leader, Seong Mi-Na's father, giving him praise for finding the sword with Hwang congratulating him as well, as if his rival acknowledged he was now superior to him. The image then showed Yun-Seong raising the sword high as his fellow countryman cheered him on before the images faded to a normal reflection.

Yun-Seong continued sitting in silence, processing what he had seen. What was the sword trying to tell him? What did the images mean in regards to his thoughts? And what did that say to him regarding Talim and Seong Mi-Na? Did that mean he... _liked_ them? Sure he thought they were both pretty, and both have been very kind to him, now that he thought about it (recent events notwithstanding). He also got upset at them adoring and getting close to Link. So why would...

'Ah, I think I see, now,' he thought. After another minute of reflection (without the sword, that is), he slowly nodded as he came to a decision before deciding to try and get as much sleep as he could.

* * *

(The next morning)

"Link...Link wake up!" a voice said to him urgently, shaking him a bit as she did.

"Mmm, wha?" he stated groggily as he slowly blinked to see Taki waking him up. And from the looks of things, very early in the morning again. It was only just past sunrise? Ugh, he hated it when Taki woke him up early.

"Yun-Seong is gone."

That seemed to wake him up as he quickly sat up in bed. "What do you mean? What happened?" he asked, suddenly very alert compared to five seconds ago.

"I woke up early to get ready as soon as I could and then went to check on the girls, only to see Talim already checking on Yun-Seong. She knocked on his door multiple times, only to get no response from him and his door was locked. I then snuck outside to his window on the balcony, only to see no one inside his room at all. While I was outside, Talim went to the front desk who said he did not see him check out. I believe he has snuck out and left for Soul Edge without us."

"What!? Why would he do that?" With everything they had talked about, he felt for sure he would come around and see Soul Edge was evil and too dangerous to take home with him, let alone wield its power.

"I don't know."

"We should go after him!" Link declared as he got out of bed and started gathering his things.

"And where do you suppose we look?" Taki asked with a little emphasis in her tone, getting him to stop in his tracks. "He has had a sizeable head-start, likely hours, and could be anywhere by now. It would not surprise me if he was near the next province by now. Or taken an early ferry to another country."

"But...what about Talim? Can't she help find him?"

"She will try. We can decide how to proceed from there. But..." she paused, getting Link's attention.

"But...what?" he asked hesitantly.

"With this turn of events, Talim and Seong Mi-Na may choose to separate in order to find Yun-Seong instead of Soul Edge."

Link's eyes widened at that. "So...they might not come with us after all?"

"That would be their decision. I will admit, they could be of help, especially the wind priestess, but the decision is theirs and theirs alone. We will just have to accept whatever decision they make."

A sad look appeared on Link's face, but he nonetheless nodded as he continued getting ready, silently hoping it would all work out.

* * *

When Seong Mi-Na was told of the situation, she understandably was very upset with her friend's actions, muttering a few curses in her native tongue, which made Taki raise an eyebrow at that. Maybe she wasn't quite as innocent as she seemed, she thought to herself.

"Oooh, when I get my hands on him, I'm going to give him a beating he won't soon forget. Ugh! How can he just abandon us like that? What was he thinking?"

"I do not know," Talim said softly in a somewhat saddened tone. "Perhaps he still felt at unease being near Miss Taki, or was afraid of having to go home after having just arrived here?"

"He better not have left because of Link punching him earlier as he deserved that one, and he knows it. Grrr, if Soul Edge doesn't kill him, I will. That short-tempered, arrogant little...Gah!" she shouted in frustration, unable to fully put her thoughts into words. "And I wasn't even wanting to go home yet, either!"

"Oh?" Taki asked with a raised eyebrow, surprising both her and Link at that.

"I...Well, about that," she hesitated, rubbing the back of her head as a somewhat nervous, sad look adorned her face before she continued. She didn't mean to let that part out. "You see...well, I've been having issues...with my father."

"What do you mean? Is everything alright?" Link asked worriedly.

"Yes! Well...kind of. I mean, I still love him and everything, it's just...well, I don't want to get into it right now. Can we continue this later?" she asked somewhat in exasperation.

The rest could tell it was a difficult subject for her and they had more pressing matters, so they nodded. "Of course. Let us have a quick meal and checkout. We can discuss our next move from there."

* * *

The four checked out before having a quick breakfast. They briefly talked about their rooms and how everyone slept before getting to the main issue at hand. "So, have either of you come to a decision?" Taki asked, getting down to business.

The other two girls looked at each other with an unsure look on their faces. "Well, we talked about it in our room, and we were both thinking of joining you two, but..." Seong Mi-Na trailed off, a hesitant look on her face.

"But...what?" Link asked.

"Well...after Yun-Seong just went up and left, now we are not so sure," Talim finished, Seong Mi-Na nodding in confirmation.

"I expected as such," Taki stated softly, not at all surprised. "I know your main concern is getting your family heirloom back, and so would have to go after Yun-Seong to get it," she said to Seong Mi-Na, who nodded.

"Indeed. But...after talking with Talim, I kind of hoped we could have all traveled together, and by the time we found Soul Edge, Yun-Seong would have finally realized the dangers of the evil sword and wasn't worth it."

"I see. I know he had a little doubt in him last we spoke with him, but do you really think he would come to that conclusion?" Taki asked in reply.

"I think he will, eventually," Talim spoke up. "He's headstrong, but he's a good person. In the end, I'm sure he'll make the right decision," she said rather confidently.

"You seem rather sure of yourself," Taki commented. "Do you really believe that to be the case?"

"I do. I've known him enough to know he has no evil intentions regarding the blade or towards others in any way. He has risked his life helping a few people from bandits and of the like in our travels, such as with yesterday," she added. "But...I do feel as though something was off in the wind related to him."

"What do you mean?" Link asked.

"This morning when I opened the window, I was suddenly startled by a gust of wind. I cannot sense the wind as much when indoors, but the feeling from a gust of wind was enough to know something was wrong, and it felt like it was coming from Yun-Seong's room. That was when I went to check on Yun-Seong, only for Taki to later find he was not in his room. I feel as if something is leading him astray, causing him to leave without us."

"Soul Edge?" Taki asked.

"I am not sure," Talim replied. "It felt dark, but not the same as what I've felt in Soul Edge."

"Hmm...interesting. And so I imagine you are wanting to go after Yun-Seong to make sure he is alright?" Taki inquired.

"Well, I am a little concerned. I know he can take of himself, but...I just am not sure. I, too, would prefer to travel together as I think it would increase our chances of destroying the evil blade, but..." she trailed off, not sure how to finish.

"I understand," Taki stated at seeing her hesitation. "Allow me to ask you this," she said, getting her attention. "In what direction can you sense the darkness leading away from the city?"

Talim got into a thinking pose for a moment before answering. "Hmm, I would need to be outside again. Then I could give you a direction."

"Then let us go outside and see."

* * *

The group left the tavern to the main street, allowing Talim to get a better feel of the wind. After concentrating a bit, she pointed in a direction. "That way. That is where I feel as if the darkness traveled."

The group looked to see where she was pointing, Taki in particular as she spoke up. "Hmm, towards the northwest, huh? That means he is likely still traveling on land as opposed to by sea. This can assist in each of you making a decision."

"Huh? What do you mean, Taki?" Seong Mi-Na asked.

"In order to explore the European mainland, it also requires going northwest from here. As such, Link and I will have to travel in that direction anyway; therefore, at least for now, we can travel together until we reach the national border. By then, you can be more sure of your decision."

Talim and Seong Mi-Na looked at each other at that, thinking it over in their heads before smiling. "That's a great idea!" Seong Mi-Na exclaimed, while Talim was a little more reserved.

"I agree, I think it is good decision to make."

"That's awesome! Welcome to the group!" Link exclaimed with a smile, getting the two girls to giggle at his cheerfulness.

"Then let us be on our way," Taki declared as they headed to leave the city and make their way to the heart of Europe.

* * *

The group had been traveling for most of the day, calmly admiring the scenery with idle conversation here and there, though the mood wasn't as cheerful with Yun-Seong's move to abandon them. Taki generally took the lead as she was most familiar with the area with Link by her side, though at times Talim or Seong Mi-Na (or both) would talk with him, resulting in him hanging back from Taki in that time. She noticed it was a very frequent thing with them, and for some reason it somewhat bothered her, though she wasn't sure why. However, she mentally shoved that aside as they continued forward. It did not appear the other girls required too many breaks to rest throughout the day, indicating they must be somewhat used to long walking in their travels. That was good. That meant more ground could be covered each day and make traveling a little easier despite a group of four.

Finally, it got dark enough that Taki decided it was time to set up camp. "I believe we should stop for the night," she stated, getting nods of agreement from the group. They stopped near a grassy plains area a few miles southeast of Nakkas, allowing them to obtain some firewood for the night. Taki then decided this was as good as an opportunity to talk to Talim about something that had been on her mind for a while now. "Link, why don't you and Seong Mi-Na get some firewood? I see a few trees over there where you can get some. Talim and I will set things here."

Link nodded and went with Seong Mi-Na to do just that, though Seong Mi-Na did raise an eyebrow before leaving. What did she want to talk to Talim about? She shrugged that aside as she went to help Link.

While they went to get some firewood, Taki and Talim started setting the base for the fire while also preparing their sleeping arrangements. It was after they were halfway getting the fire base ready that Taki spoke up. "Talim, may I speak with for a minute?"

Talim looked up after setting one of the stones for the base of the fire. "Of course, Miss Taki. What can I help you with?"

"I am rather curious regarding your wind abilities. In particular, the manner in which you helped cure the boy you mentioned that was affected by Soul Edge."

"I see. What is it you want to know, Miss Taki?" she asked politely.

"Just Taki will do," Taki calmly corrected.

"Taki, then. What is it you wanted to know?"

"You know how I mentioned the Fu-Ma were created to fight against evil and slay demons, correct?"

"Yes, I remember you mentioning that," Talim replied, recalling her story from earlier.

"To cure people from an evil energy like you did is a very useful and effective way to safely destroy evil without having to inflict physical harm on those infected or corrupted by it. I was wondering. Is there any chance you might be able to teach me how to use this ability? If you are so willing, that is?"

Talim tilted her head at that request. Taki mentioned the various "oni," as she called them, she had fought over the years, as well as the tragic story with her master and father figure. Obviously, she wished she had such an ability to help her master then, she thought to herself, but was now no longer able to do so. She looked to the side as she thought it over, taking a minute to ponder it before replying.

"Hm, I am not sure if it is something you can learn. My ability requires a very close connection to the wind to use, and I am not sure if you have enough, if any, connection to the wind to learn it," she explained.

Taki turned her head to the side a little at that. "Hm...yes, I suppose I should have expected that. I possess a variety of magic myself, but I am more affiliated with the element of fire than the wind. But...perhaps if we work on it, I could possibly learn a variation of it that I can use even without a heavy connection to the wind, if you are willing?" Taki replied.

Now, Talim was getting curious as to what Taki was really up to. From what she knew of Taki so far, she did not look the type to express a lot of interest in something, but she could tell by her insistence in learning it that there was something in particular she was looking to use it for. "I see...If I may ask, why so interested in wanting to learn it? I mean, I know of how you fight evil spirits and all, but, is there something else you are looking to use it for?"

A small smile appeared on Taki's face at being found out. It appeared she was more observant than she gave her credit for. "Yes, you are correct. I admit, I wish I had your ability, or I could have turned to you, to help my master and free him from his corruption, but that is in the past. No, I am looking to cure someone else. Or rather, _something_ else," she replied.

" _Something_ else?" Talim echoed. "What do you mean? she asked curiously before a look of realization dawned on her face. "Wait, do you mean that sword you mentioned? Becky-Naru? Er, Kemmi-Baru? Er-" she struggled, trying to get the name right.

"Mekki-Maru," Taki corrected her.

"Yes! That's it!" she exclaimed, trying to hide her embarrassment of getting the name wrong.

Taki waved that off as she continued. "Correct. This blade has been corrupted with evil energy for seven years, and continued to corrupt Toki-sama until his...demise," she said softly at the end, shaking her head a little before continuing. "Since curing him is no longer an option, I was hoping to at least cure this blade and remove the taint of Soul Edge from it once and for all. The same blade that has brought misery and suffering to my clan...and myself," she said hesitantly at the end, her emotional barrier cracking for a moment.

Talim placed the last stone in place for the fire before looking back up at Taki. She was never one to deny help to someone, and she could tell it really meant a lot to her if it could be done. She thought it over a minute, wondering if she could do just that as she compared her situation with that of the boy's situation she helped months ago. "Hmm...I would have to experiment to see if it could be done. As it is a sword and not a person, I am not sure if it would be easier or more difficult. Or impossible," she added, a little hesitantly at the end.

"That is understandable, Talim," Taki replied while nodding. "I know it greatly affected your abilities when curing the boy, and so I would not ask you to risk your abilities, or your life, for something like a sword. I merely ask if you could look into it without straining yourself, it would be most appreciated."

A small smile escaped Talim's lips before nodding. "Of course. I will see what I can do," she replied, with Taki bowing in thanks.

* * *

(With Link and Seong Mi-Na)

The two went towards the trees Taki mentioned to gather some firewood. They were about a quarter of a mile away, so it took a little time to get there. They started hacking at some branches that were low enough for them to reach, making sure they were big enough to start a fire with. As they did, Link suddenly remembered something Seong Mi-Na said earlier in the day. "Hey Seong Mi-Na, can I ask you something?"

Seong Mi-Na looked up after picking up another piece of wood with a curious look on her face. "Sure, Link. What is it?"

"Well, I was just wondering. You mentioned you were having...issues with your father. And how you didn't want to travel home yet because of him. Do you...want to talk about it?"

Seong Mi-Na gave a questioning, hesitant look before replying. "Why do you ask, Link?"

"I just...well, you mentioned not wanting to go home yet because of him, and, well...I was just wondering if everything was ok between you and him and if there was anything I could do to help?" he answered somewhat nervously.

"O...k with him?" she asked in confusion.

"Oh, it means 'alright,' as in if everything was 'alright' with him," Link explained upon introducing a new word to her.

"Oh. Well, that's very sweet of you, Link, thinking about me like that," she said softly, a small smile on her face. And she meant that. Most boys, or men, never bothered to ask how she was feeling about something, so it was very refreshing Link seemed to do so. She looked to the side, though, debating whether to share that or not, especially with how young Link was.

"Uh, you don't have to if you don't want to. I just...thought I would ask," Link said nervously at seeing her hesitation, hoping he wasn't pushing her in any way.

"No, it's alright, Link. I appreciate your concern," she said softly, and after debating with it in her head, she came to a decision. "And...it would be nice to be able to talk to someone about it. Please, sit," she gestured before dumping the piece of wood in hands into the pile she had been gathering. By now, they were mainly done gathering wood and now just needed to carry them back. She sat down cross-legged next to her pile, Link doing the same across from her as she started explaining.

"The main issue I have is in the past several years, my father has been pushing me to...get married."

"He's pushing you to get...married?" he asked in confusion, tilting his head a little as he did.

"Mm, hm," she nodded slowly. "He particularly wanted me to marry a man named Hwang, a student of his that he almost saw as his son. So much so, he pretty much wanted to adopt him into the family, and figured me marrying him could solve that problem for him. We actually did try to have a relationship, but we didn't really connect, and so it was agreed to just be friends, much to my father's disappointment," she said with minor irritation in her tone.

Link was still confused, as he was hoping for an explanation to "marriage" in general. He knew of how Anju and Kafei got "married" back in Termina, but he was still not exactly sure what that entailed. And what was different about being "married" as opposed to being "friends?" A number of questions went through his head, but he stayed silent as she continued.

"Since then, he has been looking for suitors for me to wed. Several times, I heard him talking to some friend of his, a high-ranking soldier, or some nobleman talking of their son and possibly asking for my hand in marriage. Four years ago, a wealthy trainee made a proposal to marry me, and my father seemed willing to accept it...WITHOUT my consent. And I didn't even know the man at all!" Link could tell she was very upset about it and looked to be getting more and more upset as she continued.

"That was too much for me and I just couldn't take it anymore, so I left home to look for Soul Edge again in disgust and frustration, only to have to come home empty handed after Hwang later found me and dragged me back." She let out a frustrated sigh, shaking her head a bit before continuing. "After coming home, things slowly went back to normal. But this past year, he has again been introducing me to various suitors for my hand in marriage," she stated, her agitation rising again. "And almost all of them were the son of some wealthy nobleman, and each one was just as bad as the rest. They always talked about themselves. THEIR accomplishments. THEIR skills. THEIR favorite activities. THEIR goals and dreams. Or THEIR travels or experiences in battle. Never once about what I liked, or what I have done in MY travels, or the battles I had, or any of MY dreams or goals in life (sigh)...It's just so upsetting!" she shouted in frustration with a large bob of her head.

"And he isn't even letting me choose who to marry!" she stated angrily as she continued, looking at Link as she did. "He's just finding men HE thinks would be good enough for me without talking to ME about it. I feel like...I'm just his property or something!" she exclaimed, almost in tears at this point and now looking down in front of her. "Like I'm just some trophy to award to whomever he judges is the 'winner.'"

Link wasn't sure what to say. It sounded like these "suitors" (whatever that meant) talked like Mido did years ago, always talking about himself and boasting of his skills and accomplishments as the so called "boss" of the Kokiri...usually with exaggeration to make them sound more impressive than they really were. Link usually just let it slide, even when most of his so called "accomplishments" were actually made by Link, and so he just kept quiet so as to not get into another argument with the "boss." But like his experience with Guru-Guru in Termina, sometimes all one needed when upset was for someone willing to listen to their story, to let them "get it off their chest" as he heard it, and so he stayed silent but continued listening.

"(sigh) I feel like I'm not in control of my life when I'm at home!" Seong Mi-Na she continued, her voice cracking more. "I _wanted_ to join the coast guard to help protect our country, but they wouldn't let me join just because I'm a woman! _Why_ should that matter?" she said with another bob of her head, looking at Link as she did. "I know I can fight with the best of them. I bet I could defeat even the most experienced generals we have in the coast guard. ALL of them," she declared as she continued looking at Link before letting out another frustrated sigh, looking down in front of her again with a sad look on her face as she continued. "But even my own father thinks I should just settle down and marry someone, saying to just leave the fighting to the men, and that he only let me train all these years was because I was his daughter and thought I mainly saw it as a fun activity to pass the time," she said in a much sadder tone, a stray tear starting to fall from her eyes.

By now, Link was a little upset himself. Why should her being a woman matter? In fact, why did this world seem to think less of women in general? He certainly never saw such behavior in Hyrule that he knew of. Case in point, the Gerudo tribe, which consisted _only_ of women (minus a certain Gerudo king who shall remain nameless). And he knew from personal experience they were very strong and skilled warriors.

"Fighting isn't just something I do to pass the time...it's my passion!" she declared, looking at Link again. "I want to fight to protect my home. I want to fight and make a difference in life. I want to show everyone at home that women can be just as good as the men on the battlefield! I want to inspire the women back home and show them what they can do if they just work at it!" she declared with rising determination as she spoke, looking up towards the sky and raising a fist as she did...only to slowly lower it again, her sad look returning as she let out another sigh in sadness. "And I feel like no matter how hard I try, I'll never be able to...that I'll just be forever trapped as a lowly, simple woman whose only purpose is to just make babies and stand by her husband's side and look pretty...a husband I have no choice in marrying..." she lamented as tears started to fall.

She didn't know what made her willing to open up to Link like that. Maybe because he helped save her from the thieves she was a little trusting of him? Or maybe he was a little younger and so thought he wouldn't likely judge her? Whatever the case, she didn't care about that now as tears were now freely flowing from her face as she started hugging herself, her legs now bent upward so she could wrap her arms around them, as if trying to comfort herself.

Life just felt so unfair, she thought. All the men get to do all the fun things in life while women were treated as second-class citizens. Men came first, women came second. That's just how life seemed to work...and she felt like no matter how hard she tried, there was no way for her to change that. She stayed that way for a couple minutes, crying her heart out while burying her face against her legs. It was only when she heard a slight noise beside her that she looked up in surprise, where she saw Link had now sat down next to her instead of across from her.

"I know what it's like to want to be accepted by everyone," Link said softly, a look of understanding on his face. "I was raised in a village in the forest after my mother died, a victim of a war that had been going on in my home, but I wasn't born there. Because of that, I was always treated differently by everyone. It always felt like no matter how hard I tried to fit in, they would just never fully accept me...because I was different."

Seong Mi-Na stayed silent, not sure what to say, but from his tone, it sounded like he truly _did_ know how she felt. "I could see the hesitation in their eyes when I talked to them, or played with them. Like they tried to keep their distance when they could. Others would make fun of me, tease me, or call me names. Sometimes while physically pushing me around as they did," Link added in a sad tone, his posture now mirroring Seong Mi-Na's as he thought of those earlier days growing up.

Seong Mi-Na now had a look of concern at Link now opening up to _her_. But as she listened to him, she realized just how similar they were. 'He's like me...we're the same...'

But then his pained look slowly turned to a happier one as he continued. "But I still tried...because _someone_ believed in me. _She_ always accepted me for who I was. She gave me the confidence to never give up...to never stop trying. And though it took awhile, they eventually began to _truly_ accept me...even if it took several years to do it. No more hesitation towards me. Or pushing. Or name calling," he added, a small smile on his face as he spoke, looking upward a little as he reminisced a little before looking back at Seong Mi-Na.

"So, you just have to keep at it, no matter how hard or how long it may take," he declared before standing up and turning to her. Then he outstretched his hand as if offering to help her up. "I believe in you," he said confidently to her, looking her straight in the eyes as he continued. "You're a very strong, confident, hard-working, pretty, and determined woman who knows what she wants in life and is not afraid to speak her mind and doesn't let anything hold her back."

Seong Mi-Na let out a small gasp as she stared at Link with a wide-eyed look of total surprise and astonishment on her face. She had been called many things in life, but never to the same extent Link had. So surprised was she that she was almost unaware of what she was doing, as she very tentatively took his hand and let him pull her up to a stand. "So you just have to stay the course and never give up. And eventually, those dreams and goals in life you have _will_ come true. Believe it."

Seong Mi-Na stayed silent, but her wide-eyed, jaw-dropped surprised look remained the same as she looked at Link. No one had ever given her such encouragement before, and so she wasn't sure how to respond. "Do you...really think so?" She asked quietly, a small smile starting to form on her face, her tears slowly moving from tears of sorrow to tears of happiness. "Of course!" Link replied cheerfully. "Like I said, you're very strong and hard-working. I KNOW you can do it." Seong Mi-Na couldn't help but smile at that as more tears started to fall. "And, you're very skilled, too. After all, you took out the most thieves out of all of us back in Istanbul," Link joked.

Despite herself, Seong Mi-Na couldn't help but let out a snort of laughter at that, which slowly turned into a mix of sobbing and laughing at the same time. Even in her current state, Link was still able to make her laugh, she thought as she wiped a few tears from her face. "You got that right," she said softly, still chuckling a little in between her sobs that were slowly dying down. Soon, the soft chuckling grew into flat out laughter. Link wasn't sure why it was so funny, but he couldn't help but join in as he laughed with equal joy, both of them holding onto each other for support from the heavy laughing. Slowly, the laughing died down before they both let out a sigh of content.

God, just how long had she been holding that in? She had never talked to anyone about it before. Mainly because she didn't have any friends she _could_ talk to about it. After all, she was the only woman in her country that she knew of that actually was trained to fight, and so she had a different mentality than the other women back home. And everyone in the dojo other than her was male, and most of them would often just try to flirt with her instead of actually listen to her (or touch her, she thought bitterly).

But Link...he was different. He genuinely wanted to help her. He genuinely showed concern for her and actually _listened_ to her. And not once did he say anything about her being a woman or say how she couldn't fight because of that. And not only that, but he actually stated he believed in her and her abilities. That was probably the best compliment she ever received in her entire life.

It was then they realized one small little detail...Link was still holding her hand. With BOTH hands, actually, as when encouraging her, he had placed his other hand on top of hers to show his support. A blush started forming on their faces as they looked at that before quickly looking at each other, a nervous look on their faces at that. But before Link could pull away in embarrassment, Seong Mi-Na suddenly pulled him closer and quickly wrapped her arms around him into a hug, much to Link's surprise.

"Thank you, Link...I really appreciate it," she whispered.

"Uh...you're welcome," he eventually replied while (slowly) returning the hug. His face blushed a bright red as he continued holding her, and they seemed to be rocking a little as they hugged, making her let out a sigh of content at that. They stayed that way for another minute, then suddenly his blush became even larger when Seong Mi-Na turned her head and planted a big kiss on Link's cheek, even letting out a "Muah!" as she did. She gave one more brief, yet tight hug before finally pulling back. Seeing his shocked, dazed look just made her giggle at his expression before she finally let go.

"Well, we better get going. The other girls are probably wondering what is taking us so long. Come on," she stated, picking up her pile of firewood.

"Uh...right," Link stammered, slowly moving to pick up his pile, still somewhat in a daze as he followed Seong Mi-Na back to camp.

Unseen by Link, Seong Mi-Na had a big smile on her face as she walked back. She wasn't sure what made her do all that, but felt glad that she did as she let out another deep breath. It felt as if a large weight was lifted from her shoulders after talking with Link, and she now felt happier than she did in a very long, long time. As she walked back, it was then she remembered one other thing Link said to her.

'He said I was pretty...'

And for some reason, that made her smile even more.

* * *

 **A/N: And, done! I didn't have quite as much difficulty with this chapter as I did the prior one. Yun-Seong I did not think would be willing to join a group with Taki in it, so I decided he would be out, though we'll eventually see him again at some point. The other girls I have not yet decided but should reach a decision in the next chapter or two.**

 **I took a few liberties regarding Seong Mi-Na's backstory and the suitors. By Soul Calibur II, the suitor part appeared to have been dropped or otherwise not a factor in her leaving for her third trip, so I decided to add it here. Plus, it just made more sense that it would still be an issue for her (and give her an excuse to stay in Europe :) )**

 **I don't know why I decided to have Link use Naruto's catchphrase "Believe it" in, but it just seemed to fit, though I certainly don't plan to use it regularly.**

 **But for now, Yun-Seong decided to travel on his own after unusual reflections of his thoughts appeared on his sword. Just what did Zasalamel do? And just how affected was Yun-Seong by it? And what will Talim and Seong Mi-Na do from here? Will they stay with Link and Taki? Or look for Yun-Seong?**

 **Stay tuned!**

 **Until then, this is Agent Ghost-Writer 000, signing off.**


	21. Chapter 21 - On the Road Again

**A/N: (Update 1/8/20) Happy New Year everyone! I wanted to get this chapter posted shortly before things started getting hectic for me. I will soon be taking an online class for my MBA and work will give me no spare time to write for the next few months, so don't expect any updates until the summer time at the earliest. Writing a story has been a goal of mine, and I intend to see this story through even if it takes several years to do it, and then I hope to write some more stories some day as well.**

 **I had even started my own novelization of OOT, but my focus hasn't been as sharp on that compared to this one. I intend to add a few twists to it compared to the gameplay of OOT (and its limited interactions between all the characters and Link), as well as an alternate version after Link pulls the Master Sword, but that won't be for a while at this time. For now, here's the next chapter of this story. Enjoy!**

 **.**

This is a sentence. - Narration. No character speaking or thinking.

"This is a sentence." - Character speaking out loud.

'This is a sentence.' - Character speaking in his/her head.

"(This is a sentence.)" - Character speaking out loud but in a language unfamiliar to the characters (and I was too lazy to research the correct wording).

This _is_ a sentence. - Emphasis placed on the italic word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

This IS a sentence. - Same as with the single italic, just a variation of expressing the emphasis.

 _This is a sentence. -_ All italics means the event is happening in a dream or flashback of which I would give a quick note prior saying a dream or flashback is occurring.

 _This_ is _a sentence_. - During a dream or flashback, emphasis placed in the normal text word in the normal course of the narration or the character speaking or thinking.

 **.**

 **I do not own The Legend of Zelda or Soul Calibur.**

* * *

 **Chapter 21 - On the Road Again**

When Link and Seong Mi-Na finally arrived, both Taki and Talim couldn't help but notice the rather happy smile on Seong Mi-Na's face. "Someone is in a good mood," Taki commented with a raised eyebrow. "What took you so long?"

"We just...got lost on the road of life," Seong Mi-Na replied, the smile never leaving her face as she briefly looked at Link.

Talim had a confused look at that. What did that mean? Did she and Link...no, they wouldn't have done anything like that. Link certainly wouldn't. Then...why did Seong Mi-Na look so happy? And was Link a little embarrassed? She looked between them a bit before shaking her head. She must be imagining things.

"Uh, huh," Taki replied as she looked between the two. She had a more suspicious look on her face, but she knew Link wouldn't do anything like that, though she was a little surprised at herself that she would think something like that to begin with, or why she would care before mentally shrugging it off. "Well, now that you're here, we can get the fire going. Just place the wood there."

The two did as instructed, arranging the wood in place. But just as Taki prepared to make the sparks to start the fire, Link interrupted, holding an arrow. "I'll handle it," Link said with a bit of a smirk on his face. The other three watched in curiosity as he placed an arrow—which he again pulled seemingly out of nowhere—at the base of the firewood. Then with a command, the arrow-tip suddenly burst into flame, much to their surprise. Even Taki, as though she had seen his Light Arrow, he hadn't before demonstrated his apparent "Fire Arrow." Link let the arrow sit for a minute, giving the wood time to burn on its own before pulling his Fire Arrow out and extinguishing it—and then making it disappear entirely.

"Wow...Is there anything you can't do?" Seong Mi-Na commented, which made him laugh a little and bashfully rub the back of his head at the praise.

They shortly started eating dinner with some of the food supplies they had on hand. It was while they were eating that Talim was reminded of something she had wanted to ask for a while, now. "Hey, Link," she started, getting his attention.

Link turned to her, swallowing a piece of bread in his hand. "What is it, Talim?"

"Well, I was wondering...through the wind I am able to feel the energy from your sword. Would you...be willing to show it to me?" she asked rather shyly.

Link gave her a curious look before shrugging and unsheathed his blade and laid it in his hands for view. Talim couldn't help but let out a small gasp at the heavenly aura it seemed to give off. Even Seong Mi-Na looked impressed as she too was looking at it in curiosity. Despite the fact it was dark out, it still gave off a holy blue glow that was easily visible. It had such a pleasant feeling to it, especially with the gentle breeze Talim felt accompanying it. When asked where he got such a sword, Link explained how the Sages in his home helped purify the shard of Soul Edge they had obtained before using it to help forge the sword in his hand.

"It has such a beautiful glow. Like the sword I've seen in my visions," Talim said in a soft tone.

That got their attention. "Visions? What visions? Like, in your dreams?" Link asked, suddenly reminded of how Princess Zelda saw visions back home that related to Hyrule's fate. Talim nodded before Taki now suddenly spoke up.

"And of a sword, you say? You have been seeing a sword in these 'visions' of yours? Link's sword?" Taki asked, her curiosity now peaked at this latest piece of information.

"You've been seeing swords in your dreams?" Seong Mi-Na wryly commented, who found the idea rather strange.

Talim took a moment to compose herself from the sudden round of questions she was getting. "Um, not quite what I meant, but yes. In the past few months, I have seen visions of a sword in my dreams. A beautiful, blue sword that gave such a heavenly glow, much like this sword here."

They paused to look at the blade in question, wondering what that all meant. "But...the sword in these 'visions' is different than this one?" Seong Mi-Na questioned.

"Correct."

"Hmm...Interesting. What else can you tell us about this sword in these 'visions' of yours?" Taki asked, her mind trying to determine the usefulness of this new information.

"The strange part is the shape never appears to be the same in each vision. But I can tell you in each vision, it appeared to be much larger than this one. Sometimes as long as a longsword while other times when stood upright it looked very tall, taller than even you, Taki," she said, briefly looking at as she mentioned her. A sword taller than her? She was 5' 7", a very tall height male OR female, and a sword taller than that was rare indeed. "And it almost looked as if the base of the sword, or sometimes the entire sword itself, was made of crystal and had a bright, blue jewel near the hilt, which glowed the brightest amongst the other parts of the sword."

The group was silent at that as they tried to picture it in their heads for a minute before Seong Mi-Na spoke up. "So, does that mean Link holds a piece of this sword, then?"

"I cannot say," Talim replied. "And in each vision, it always seemed the sword was somewhere in the Western lands from what I can tell."

"Oh? What makes you think so?" Taki asked curiously. Could this sword possibly be somewhere in Europe? This just keeps getting more and more interesting, she thought.

"Do you know where?" Link also asked.

"I am not certain as to where, but I occasionally have seen it in the ruins of an old castle of some kind. Its design did not look like anything I've seen in the East. In addition, just after each vision, I could feel something faint in the winds coming from the West. And as I journeyed further into the West, the visions became more potent and more frequent, with the last vision I had the night before I met all of you, and the wind I felt after each vision felt larger as I journeyed westward as well."

Silence again rendered the group. A sword opposite Soul Edge? And here in Europe? Was this the key to destroying Soul Edge? It sounded very promising. The idea itself was enough to instill a little more hope in each others' spirits. Even Taki's, who was never one to get her hopes up. Prior to this, she thought if blades infused with Soul Edge clashed against each other, they would ultimately destroy each other, a theory she was expecting to put to the test with her Mekki-Maru.

However, this new information changed that thought. Perhaps this apparent "holy" sword could destroy it? Link seemed to have such a "holy" blade as well, perhaps even a shard of it forged into his sword. Perhaps it, too, could destroy it? Or at least greatly weaken it? She had to admit, this was the most useful and most interesting thing she learned regarding Soul Edge and gave her something to process in her head for awhile. Then a thought came to her.

"Does Yun-Seong know about this sword or these 'visions' of yours?" Taki asked.

Talim shook her head. "No. I was afraid if I told him, it might convince him to go after this sword in addition to Soul Edge and further his resolve to search for it."

"I see. A definite possibility to be sure."

"Still...I feel a little bad of keeping it a secret from him."

"Perhaps. But a wise move nonetheless given his...fiery personality," Taki replied, though it did little to assuage Talim.

"Ah, don't worry about him," Seong Mi-Na spoke up, waving off her concern. "I know him enough to know he doesn't stay mad for long at someone, especially when he knows he was wrong on something. Once he realizes Soul Edge is evil, I'm sure he'll understand."

"Are you sure?" Talim asked hesitantly, still not sure on that.

"Trust me. He might be a little thick-headed at times, but he's a good person. And if he does still feel resentment for it, I'll be sure to set him straight."

Talim looked at her, not sure what she meant on that last part but stayed silent. Finally, Taki spoke up.

"Well, it is getting late. We can worry about it another time. For now, let us try and get as much sleep as we can."

The group nodded in agreement at that, with Taki volunteering to take first watch and the others rotating afterwards as they all turned in for the night.

* * *

The night went without incident, though Link still had trouble waking up, muttering "Five more minutes" in his sleep, much to the girls' amusement (minus Taki, who merely shook her head). They soon were back on the road, traveling towards the national borders with Greece and Bulgaria. They spent the next few days traveling without incident and were now less than a day's walk to the border.

Link was now in his red Goron Tunic while Taki switched to wearing a purple colored outfit with a mesh shirt underneath that extended to her elbows, a metal waistband and green sash on her stomach, and different-colored gauntlets, shoulder guards, and shin guard armor that went up to her knees with red trimmings at the top and a circular blue symbol near the top of each shin guard. The shoulder guards were also connected to each other across the front and back and she wore a head piece that had a narrow extension that went just over her nose ( **A/N: Her purple outfit from the first Soul Edge game but without the Japanese banner behind her** ).

Seong Mi-Na had switched to an outfit with light purple all of her arms and legs with various dark purple designs all over it but left her abdomen, neck, and upper chest bare. She wore a green top with orange markings on it along with a skirt that had the same color scheme as her top and went down to her knees. She wore footwear that was green at the base of it and light pink up to her shins with magenta trimmings at the top, along with orange foot-guards that covered her upper feet to lower shins and had a blue and white circle near the bottom that was similar to the Chinese Ying-Yang in design but not quite the same. She had on orange fingerless gloves with the same pink design and material as her shoes and had the same blue and white symbol on the back of her hands as that on her footwear. Finally, she had a headband with the same light purple color as her arms and legs with darker purple rectangles going across the center of the headband ( **A/N: Her PlayStation-exclusive outfit from the first Soul Edge** **game** ).

Talim was now in a pink outfit with a short-sleeved white overshirt connected by a yellow and red brooch. A red necklace with a brighter red gem adorned her neck and she had red armbands with gold trimmings. She had red shorts with similar gold trimming that left most of her legs bare and wore sandals with pink ankle-bands and burgundy straps underneath that went from the ankle to halfway up to her knees. Finally, she had brown fingerless gloves with a more lavender color on the backs of the hands and wore a unique headpiece that almost resembled cat ears with pink fabric protruding from them that covered her ears ( **A/N: Her 2P outfit from** **SC2** ).

Since leaving Istanbul, Seong Mi-Na and Talim have been privately thinking on whether to stay with Link and Taki or pursue Yun-Seong and make sure he was alright.

Per her father's instructions, Seong Mi-Na had an obligation to retrieve the White Storm from Yun-Seong. The fact she had lent it to him to begin with also made it a rather personal obligation to retrieve it, though she didn't want to just take it by force (even though she threatened to do so earlier) and preferred he came back willingly with it. Given Yun-Seong's fiery personality and now that he was traveling on his own, he would likely get himself in trouble at some point and try to "bite off more than he could chew," as she heard Link describe about him once. This made her want to look for him and make sure he didn't wind up in prison or otherwise bring unnecessary attention to himself.

But at the same time...she liked traveling with the group—or to be more precise, she liked traveling with Link. Ever since opening up to him that night, she felt a lot...happier. In fact, simply being in his presence just seemed to lift her spirits and make her smile more. She had to admit, she liked traveling in general, but traveling with Link seemed to make it even more enjoyable and the thought of not being able to travel with him just felt rather...upsetting to her. Why was that? Sure, he was a nice boy and all, and she only knew him for but a few days...and yet, it already felt much longer. Granted, she didn't know Yun-Seong for very much longer either, admittingly. And yet, she felt she knew Link a lot more. Was it selfish, wanting to stay with someone like that and leave the other to himself, despite the (possible) danger he may be facing or may face down the road? Her mind was so conflicted from it all, and so she wasn't sure what to do.

Talim was also worried about Yun-Seong's well-being. Ever since he left them, she felt an unpleasant and dark wind that almost seemed to follow Yun-Seong. It was getting fainter as time went on, and she felt it would soon be out of range entirely, something she told the group about. She even asked if they could travel a little faster the past couple days to try to keep up (which prompted Link to oblige by introducing them to the game of "Tag," much to their enjoyment—except Taki, who elected not to join in, prompting Link to call her a "party pooper" which made her twitch in annoyance). He kept saying how he would use Soul Edge to protect his country with it, and she truly thought he would finally see the folly of it after Link talked to him; however, it appeared he still thought Soul Edge was still worth obtaining and didn't want to have to confront the rest of the group about it when then found it. She was still feeling down about that, but she kept her feelings to herself as she tried to stay positive.

Also...she too enjoyed Link's company. He was strong, a skilled warrior, yet a very gentle soul with a kind heart. He just seemed to have this way of making someone smile without even trying, and simply being near him let her feel calm and at peace—a feeling amplified by the soothing wind that always seemed to accompany him. It also didn't hurt that he looked very cute and had the most beautiful blue eyes she had even seen. Just what did she do? Did she stay and help them look for and destroy Soul Edge? Or look for Yun-Seong first and make sure he was alright? This issue raged in her head, unsure of what to do as time went by.

Taki, meanwhile, had something else in mind. She had been going over the incident in Istanbul several times in her head. Although they had answers as to what happened that day, there was one important detail that remained unanswered that she was reminded of—the strange presence Talim and even Link seemed to have sensed.

Just who or what was that? Was it one of the thieves? Or someone else, maybe directing the thieves' actions? And was he or they responsible for what occurred with Yun-Seong? What _did_ they do to get him to leave everyone, and what would they want with him? It just didn't make sense.

'Or maybe...he isn't the target at all?' Taki thought, a new line of thought crossing her mind. 'If not him, then what _are_ they after?...Or is the right question, _who_ are they after?' she thought, briefly looking behind her towards Talim, who was currently talking with Link.

"Something wrong, Taki?"

Her thoughts were interrupted as she looked at Seong Mi-Na, who had a curious look on her face. "I am fine. Just...thinking is all."

"About what? Something about Talim?" she asked upon seeing where she was looking.

Taki paused, thinking it over in her head before replying. "Not exactly. I was still thinking of something that happened in Istanbul, something that has been troubling me that I cannot seem to figure out."

"You mean with Yun-Seong?"

"Mm, perhaps...in part," she replied slowly.

"Huh? What do you mean?" she asked with a confused look.

Taki now looked directly at Seong Mi-Na before replying. "Do you recall how at one point while following Link and I, Talim said she felt a strange presence and so changed course to go after _it_ instead of _us_?"

Seong Mi-Na looked to the side, thinking it over as she recalled the story before nodding. "Yes, I remember. What about it?"

"Talim said she first sensed it in Egypt, as if it was a presence looking to stay hidden. She would have possibly learned the source before Link's bomb went off and she turned back. In addition, Link said he too thought he felt a strange presence amidst the havoc occurring, not long AFTER his bomb went off."

"Alright...so? What does that mean, then?" Seong Mi-Na replied, not understanding what she was getting at.

"Well, then remember what happened right after that. After Link sensed something, it was if all of the thieves were suddenly targeting _Talim_ , as opposed to you, Link, or myself. Despite the fact WE were the ones to have had prior dealings with them. NOT Talim."

A flash of realization seemed to appear on Seong Mi-Na's face before replying. "I see...Whomever this stranger is, they were after _Talim_. But...why? What was it that made them go after her?"

"That is what I have been trying to figure out," she said as she got into another thinking pose.

"Figure out what about me?" The two turned to see Talim walking just behind them along with Link, both with curious looks on their faces.

"More about the strange presence that was felt in Istanbul, actually. You were listening?" Taki asked calmly.

"Well, more Link. He said he heard you mention my name and something about the thieves targeting me instead of the three of you, so we walked up to hear more."

Taki looked at Link for a moment before replying. "I see...well, as I was saying with Seong Mi-Na, I have been thinking about the strange presence you had mentioned earlier. In particular, who or what it was and who or what they are after."

Oh right, Link thought. He had forgotten all about that. He had wondered about what that was at the time, but after everyone was safe, he had forgotten that little detail. "Any ideas?" he asked.

"Taki thinks this 'strange presence' you had mentioned in Istanbul was after Talim," Seong Mi-Na answered, looking at Talim at the end.

"Me/Her?" Talim and Link answered at the same time, the two briefly looking at each other before Talim continued.

"But...why me? Are you sure?"

"I cannot say for certain why, but the more I think of it, the more it makes sense." She then detailed what she worked out with Seong Mi-Na to the other two.

"But, how can you be sure she is the one being targeted? And why her when she only just arrived here? It just doesn't make sense!" Link exclaimed, prompting Taki to mentally raise an eyebrow at the way he said it.

"I am aware of that, Link," she said, trying to calm him down as he looked at her. "There must be something we don't know that this stranger does regarding Talim, and he or they consider her such a threat so as to have her killed."

Link opened his mouth as if to reply, but he held back. He wanted to dispute that, but he found no real argument to give. He looked at Talim, who tried to make it look like she was calm, but Link could tell she had a worried look in her eyes.

"In fact, hmm..." Taki said slowly, getting their attention again. She went into a thinking pose, a hand in her chin as she thought about it for a few moments. "I believe this same presence you felt related to Yun-Seong is likely the same presence you felt when you were originally following us," she stated, looking at Talim as she spoke. "And this presence may have tricked or otherwise affected Yun-Seong in such a way with the intention of drawing you out. _Alone_ , so as to make it easier to kill you."

The group was silent at that, Link and Seong Mi-Na briefly looking at Talim, who looked uncomfortable at the looks they were giving her. As much as they did not want to admit it, it did make sense. If she left to go after Yun-Seong, she could be doing right what the enemy wants. But was this unknown enemy really targeting Talim like Taki suggested? Or was she just trying to scare her into staying with them?

That last part was something that came across Seong Mi-Na's mind. She looked at Taki for several moments, and after thinking it over in her mind, she nodded to herself and decided to act on it. "Taki? Can I speak with you in private for a minute?"

The rest of the group looked at her a bit, Taki in particular as she kept her usual neutral expression but inside was wondering what was so important to her to talk to her in private. Her habit of cautiousness took over, going over various possible incidents in her head that could result from this encounter before mentally chiding herself for that. "Very well," she nodded before walking away from Link and Talim, keeping her eyes on Seong Mi-Na as she turned, then to Link and Talim before turning away entirely.

"Is everything alright, Seong Mi-Na?" Link asked.

"Just wanted to clear something up before continuing this discussion. We won't be long," she said before going to join Taki, leaving a confused Link and Talim behind her.

* * *

After walking a ways from Link and Talim, Taki finally stopped and turned around, patiently waiting for Seong Mi-Na who joined her shortly afterwards. "So then? What is it you wished to discuss with me?" Taki asked, getting right down to business while placing a hand on her waist for emphasis.

"I just wanted to make sure of something," she said evenly, but Taki could sense a slight suspicion in her tone.

Taki stayed as she was, though she did slightly tilt her head at that. "Hm...and what would that be?"

"You aren't just making all that up, are you?"

"What do you mean?" she asked in slight confusion.

"I mean, you're not trying to scare Talim into staying with you, are you?" Seong Mi-Na asked, giving a somewhat sideways look at her.

Taki stayed silent a few moments but now had a vague idea where she was going with this. "Why would you think that?" she asked calmly.

"Talim mentioned you had talked to her about possibly learning how to use her purifying abilities, as well as how she could sense shards of Soul Edge from long distances and how you said it was a very useful ability. I saw the two of you working on something while Link and I sparred the past couple nights, and she later mentioned that's what you were trying to do. Given your...occupation, I just wanted to make sure you weren't trying to...trick her in any way into staying," Seong Mi-Na she added slowly, choosing her words carefully.

"Hmm...and do you think I am?"

Seong Mi-Na paused before replying. "...I do not believe so..."

"But...?" Taki replied, sensing her hesitation.

Seong Mi-Na again paused before replying, taking in a deep breath. "...I still felt the need to make sure. I do not mean to sound offending, but she is my friend and I just wanted to make sure she did not feel pressured in any way into staying," she finished, giving a calm yet somewhat tense look at Taki, which Taki returned as she thought it over.

Taki could tell Seong Mi-Na was a little suspicious of her, despite how they had already settled their differences related to their nationalities. She could also tell she and Talim seemed to have gotten along rather well in the short time they've known each other. Although despite her suspiciousness towards her, a part of Taki was actually rather pleased with Seong Mi-Na mentioning this. For one, it allowed them to help bring up this issue that Taki was expecting would be addressed, and preferably without any accusations or arguments between them like Seong Mi-Na stated. And two, that Seong Mi-Na was able to think of such a genuine possibility herself, which demonstrated her ability to look for possible hidden motives in people's actions or words—something the Fu-Ma are always taught to look out for. She also liked how she spoke her mind and was willing to address the tough issues as they arose. If she chose to stay, she could prove to be a useful ally as well. After a couple minutes, Taki finally gave a slow nod before speaking.

"No offense taken, Seong Mi-Na," she said assuringly, making Seong Mi-Na relax slightly at that. "If anything, I appreciate you in addressing them in the manner you have given. Rest assured," she stated, her hands making a slight placating gesture, "I am not making up any such possibilities with the intention to trick her or for any personal or selfish desires. Everything I have described is based purely on all the facts we have gathered and is what I have been able to work out so far _based_ on these facts. I cannot prove any of them to be real, but I have always been taught to determine all possibilities based on the facts presented to me and slowly eliminate them until only one possible solution remains."

"Hmm...that makes sense," Seong Mi-Na said slowly as she thought over Taki's answer. "But how do you know Talim is the one they're after?"

"As I said, I am not 100% certain Talim is indeed the target," she replied, shaking her head slightly as she spoke. "But based on what we _do_ know, I believe that is the most likely possibility, and so I felt it necessary to share my thoughts on that. Nothing more."

Seong Mi-Na looked at Taki for a minute as she processed what she had been told. Finally, she nodded her head in acceptance, a small but satisfied smile appearing on her face. "Alright. I just wanted to make sure."

"No harm done. And besides, if I were to ever trick someone like that, Link would be very upset with me."

Seong Mi-Na blinked in surprise at that. "Link?" she echoed in confusion, tilting her head a little. "You would be worried about upsetting Link?"

"You sound surprised," Taki commented.

"Well...a little. I mean, seeing an adult ninja from the east traveling with a young boy from the west? And with such familiarity? It's...not exactly a common sight."

"That is understandable," Taki calmly replied, having expecting something like this since traveling with Link, such as with Takeda and some of the sailors on their ship to Persia who had similar thoughts. "I can imagine it must look strange. Someone like me, a ninja traveling with someone as young and innocent as him." Seong Mi-Na nodded at that in confirmation. "But...he saved my life. Twice, actually. And one could argue even more than that," she added. That was probably the first time she openly admitted that part. The incident at the temple, taking the shuriken for her, and then aiding in their escape? Three times actually sounded more accurate, she thought to herself as she continued.

"As such, I feel I owe him. The fact he is also looking to destroy Soul Edge and is very skilled and resourceful helps as well. Also..." she paused, looking towards the boy in question, who seemed to have started a game of "Tag," as he called it, with Talim, "he seems to have an unusually way of connecting with people. Whether through his actions or his words, you cannot help but be drawn in by his kindness and personality," she said.

"That's true," Seong Mi-Na added, also now looking at Link. Back in Istanbul, Taki did mention how he saved her twice, but she still had to admit, it was still unusual to see a ninja hold someone so young in high regard, let alone be friends with him. But satisfied in what she learned, she shrugged that off. "Well, shall we get back?"

Taki looked at Seong Mi-Na for a moment before nodding. "Indeed. And one more thing," she added, getting her attention. "Whatever decision you and Talim decide, it will each be yours and yours alone, and I will respect whichever decision you make."

Seong Mi-Na gave a soft smile and nodded. "Thank you. That is all I ask," she said before the two headed back to Link and Talim.

* * *

(Earlier, with Link and Talim)

"What do you think she wanted to talk to her about?" Link asked as he watched the two walk off a ways.

"I am not certain," Talim said worriedly, something Link noticed as he looked at her in concern.

"Hey, are you alright?"

Talim did not immediately reply, instead was looking down towards the ground in silence. So many emotions were running through her with what Taki had said. As much as she didn't want it to be true, it seemed like whatever or whomever this strange presence was really WAS trying to kill her. And if that's true, did this same being trick Yun-Seong into leaving alone to get her to follow him...alone? It actually did sound plausible, but...was it true? She tried to come up with another explanation, but no matter how hard she tried, she could not ignore the possibility—and she hated it.

She felt she should look for him as he was her friend...but then that would mean putting herself in possible danger if she left the group. Seong Mi-Na was also looking for Yun-Seong—maybe they could look for him together? But...what if Seong Mi-Na wanted to stay with Link and Taki instead? She could not force her to make a decision she didn't want to make. But if she stayed also, then she would risk something happening to Yun-Seong from whatever may be affecting him.

All this was becoming too much as she started sobbing and shook her head. "No, I am not. I just feel so...helpless. And scared. And unsure..." she said, looking at Link at the end before continuing. "I mean, I want to go after Yun-Seong and make sure he is alright and not under any evil influence in any way, and also find out why he left on his own...But if this unknown being is truly after me, then I could be walking into its hands." By now, she was starting to pace back and forth a little, occasionally looking at Link while she did or pausing and gesturing at each point she addressed.

"But if I stay, then Yun-Seong would still be alone and at risk of being further affected by whatever force may have influenced him. And he's my friend, and so I can't just leave him. We all know he would likely get into trouble at some point, possibly to the point he can't handle it all on his own, and so I feel I should look after him and make sure he's alright...And yet if I do, I would be at risk of falling into a trap by this unknown being that could be after me, someone we don't even know who it is or what they want and yet wants me dead, and...I just don't know what to do!" she finally exclaimed, turning so her back was now facing Link, not wanting him to see her sad state as tears started to form in her eyes.

Even though she was a well-trained fighter despite her age, she still didn't have as much confidence in herself as she would have liked. Whether if it was from being the last wind priestess in her village, the expectations that came with _being_ a wind priestess, or something else she couldn't explain, this led her to often feeling self-doubt and insecure about herself, and with everything that had happened and what she had been told, such feelings were now coming in full force as tears were now flowing from her eyes, her resolve finally cracking under the pressure.

Link was now in what was becoming somewhat familiar territory at seeing a girl crying in front of him, though that didn't necessarily mean he knew what to do or what to say in such circumstances. On occasion, he had tried to comfort a crying girl back in Kokiri Forest, and sometimes the girl simply shouted at him in reply, saying she didn't want anyone's help or just wanted to be alone. Or both. That often made Link hesitate or feel unsure of what to do in such instances, but he still felt he should always at least try to help whenever or however he could—regardless if she might snap at him in the process.

With that, he slowly walked towards Talim, moving in front of her and gently put a hand on her shoulder. This action slightly startled her as she briefly looked at the hand in question before looking up at Link in surprise—though she was actually still looking down slightly as she was still a couple inches taller than him. He ignored that as she gave her a soft, reassuring smile to her.

"I don't think you need to worry. I'm sure he is alright, and as you said, he does not appear to be under Soul Edge's influence in any way. And even if it is indeed something else that may have caused him to run off, I'm sure he can take care of himself. He's a skilled fighter; even Taki-chan admitted as such. Of course...it wouldn't surprise me if he got into a little trouble every now and then, knowing him," he joked. That actually got Talim to let out a tiny chuckle, which made him smile a little more at seeing her cheer up a little. "But as you said, he's a good person, and so I don't think he would ever do anything to harm anyone," he said with another smile, pausing a little before continuing. "So, don't fret too much about him. And if he still has his heart set on keeping Soul Edge to protect his country, I'm sure he'll eventually come around and truly see for what Soul Edge really is. Just have faith," he said assuringly, echoing the same words that the Happy Mask Salesman had often said to him before.

Talim stayed silent as she looked at Link. She was slightly confused at a few terms Link used, but the way he said it just made her feel like everything would alright, like everything would work out in the end. 'Just have faith...' she said to herself as she reflected on Link's words. Soon, a warm smile adorned her face as she repeated those words to herself. Where before her face showed sadness and despair now showed more smiles and hope in her heart as she looked back at Link. It was then she noticed his hand was still on her shoulder, making her blush a little.

Link saw this, suddenly feeling a little embarrassed himself. But seeing Talim starting to feel better, he slowly moved to take his hand off her shoulder. As if in response, Talim briefly watched his arm slowly retreat...before suddenly she leaned forward and wrapped her arms around him, holding him into a rather big hug, much to his surprise. Like with Seong Mi-Na, he was initially surprised be the sudden move, but after taking a few moments to overcome his shock, he slowly wrapped his arms around her and returned the hug, which made her let out a sigh of content as he continued holding her. He had to admit, he was starting to get used to this...and as strange as it was, it didn't feel like a bad thing either, he thought as he felt Talim relax further into him, making him hold her a little tighter. Subconsciously, he started rocking her slightly, and she rubbed her cheek against his a little in response, making him blush even more.

Finally, after what felt like several minutes (although in reality barely half a minute), Talim slowly pulled back slightly, a somewhat embarrassed look on her face at her actions. "Um, sorry. I just...um...," she trailed off, finding it hard to look at Link now.

"I-It's alright. I'm...glad I could help. Don't worry about it," Link said shyly, a little red in the face from the hug. After several moments, Link very slowly (yet with strange reluctance) began to let go, but just as soon as he did, Talim suddenly leaned forward and gave him a short, yet lingering kiss on the cheek before quickly turning around, blushing as she did. She didn't know what possessed her to do that, but for some reason it just...felt right to her. As if in response to this, a gentle breeze blew by shortly after kissing him, uplifting her spirits even more as she took a deep breath at the feeling in the wind. It felt so...calming. Like before in Egypt, she thought.

She hugged herself a little at that before turning around. Seeing Link's still red in the face and shocked expression made her let out another giggle when suddenly a thought came to her, a playful smile adorning her face as she let out another laugh. "Tag! You're it!"

That got Link to wake out of his stupor, blinking a little at what she implied before smiling. "Oh, you're gonna get it now!" he laughed in reply as he started chasing her. And she actually was "it" when they stopped playing the last time, too!

As they continued playing and running around, he briefly wondered about the kisses on the cheek he had received from the various girls he met. Both at home and in this world. Just what was it with girls doing that? And why did he always have that butterfly feeling in his chest when that happened? Did girls get the same feeling? Then the thought of what if _he_ kissed a girl on the cheek crossed his mind. Would he think it gross? Or the girls think it gross? Or would they get the same feeling as he did about it?

He shook his head from his thoughts. Whatever the case, Talim was feeling better now and that was all that mattered. It was after a few minutes of playing that Taki and Seong Mi-Na returned. "Having fun?" Taki commented, getting them to stop.

"Very," Talim replied with a smile while Link nodded.

Taki raised an eyebrow at that. Having been trained as a ninja for many years, her instincts told her something felt a little off when she said that.

Even Seong Mi-Na gave her a look, feeling something was "off" at that before shrugging it aside.

"Everything alright? What did you talk about?" Link asked.

"We just needed a private chat for a minute. Nothing to worry about," Seong Mi-Na replied calmly, sharing a look with Taki.

"Oh...well, as long as nothing's wrong."

"Indeed, nothing is wrong. By any chance have you thought over what I said earlier while we were away?" Taki asked them.

At that, a slight blush appeared on both of their faces, recalling their earlier...interaction. This made Taki raise another eyebrow at their reactions. Did she miss something?

"Well, I have a little. I am still not sure why anyone would want to kill me, though."

Once again Taki made note of her response. She often spoke rather softly and timidly in prior conversations, but there was very little hesitation this time. Did Link say something to her? She filed that away for later as Talim continued. "And I appreciate you sharing your thoughts...and your concern," she added with a small smile and nod of her head. "I have not yet decided, but I will take them into consideration."

"I see," she said slowly, once again noting her tone. She paused, looking between her and Link for a moment before continuing. "Well, we should make the border by nightfall. Perhaps by morning, you will feel more sure of your decision. And you, as well," Taki stated, looking at Seong Mi-Na at the end, who nodded. "Well, shall we continue, then?" she gestured.

"Sure, but there is one more thing," Talim stated.

"And what is that?" Taki asked.

At first, Talim didn't reply but did walk closer to Taki until she was right in front of her...before quickly tapping her on her arm and running off. "Tag! You're it!" she shouted, making her widen her eyes in surprise...before narrowing them and grunting in annoyance. Great, first Link, now Talim? She couldn't believe this. Fu-Ma no Taki, fooled. AGAIN. It didn't matter if it was something so trivial as a childish game. She was a ninja, damn it! She was supposed to be trained to watch out for such tricks, especially after the times Link had tricked her previously! As if to add to her annoyance, both Link and Seong Mi-Na had also quickly run away from her while laughing at her expense.

However, she would not rise to the bait and simply crossed her arms. "I am not playing this childish game."

"Aw, come on, Taki. Don't be such a spoilsport." Seong Mi-Na shouted, using the same term Link used earlier as the two shared a smiling look at that. "Besides, we're all kids at heart. Didn't you ever play games as a child?"

"I haven't been a child since I was five years old," she replied rather coldly, but with what appeared to be a (very small) hint of sadness in her tone, bringing a small frown on the others' faces.

"Well, just think of it as training. Like when we raced each other before reaching Istanbul," Link stated.

"That was just that. _Training_. Not _racing_ ," she growled in annoyance.

"Po-tay-to, po-tah-to. Ka-tan-a, ka-tahn-a. Same thing. Come on!" Link shouted while still stepping away from her, urging her on, although his metaphor did make her eye twitch again. Nonetheless, she stayed silent and not moving in place. "Fine, then we'll just leave you behind, slowpoke!" Link jested before running away from her, the others doing the same with a laugh as well.

'Slowpoke?' Taki echoed to herself at the new term, but could quickly gather it meant calling someone slow. Not wanting them to give them the satisfaction of being baited by their taunting, she calmly walked forward even as the others ran considerably farther away from her; however, she was not going to take that lying down.

Deciding to get even in her own way, she kept walking normally until the other three were out of view after they went over a decently sized hill before promptly running far off to the side for roughly a hundred yards before turning and running in the same direction as them. After another minute of running, she was now even with them. 'Good. So far, no one has seen me yet,' she thought as she kept running forward. Now as she ran, she slowly turned inward until she was now directly in front of them, finding a conveniently placed tree on top of another hill with a large trunk to hide behind.

"Is she still coming?" Talim asked upon not seeing Taki anymore for several seconds, getting the others' attention as they stopped to look back...just before passing said tree.

"Hey Taki-chan! You coming, or what?" Link yelled.

"Come on, 'slowpoke!'" Seong Mi-Na followed, using the same term as Link earlier, making him laugh a little at that.

Not seeing her after several more seconds, they were starting to get somewhat concerned, looking at each other a minute in concern before Link shouted again. "Hey, where are you?"

"...Right behind you," Taki replied quickly and suddenly, her lips right next to Link's ear when she spoke while simultaneously making a large pat on his opposite shoulder.

"GAH!" Link yelped and jumped in surprise at the sudden pat on his shoulder and Taki speaking so suddenly right next to his ear from behind him, the other two also jumping a little in the process before quickly turning around in surprise. A brief smirk flashed on her face before disappearing by the time everyone turned to face her.

"I believe the correct term here is, 'Tag, you're it,'" she stated dryly as she crossed her arms in an annoyed look, while mentally grinning at their stunned and stupefied looks (as well as Link jumping in surprise).

"Where did you-?/How did you?-/Where in the-?" Seong Mi-Na/Talim/Link started before looking behind them where they thought Taki was, then looking back, as if to confirm their eyes weren't deceiving them. "How did you-?/Where in the-?/Where did you-?" the three stated, then briefly looked at each other, as if looking for answers before looking back at Taki. "How did you do that?" they all said at the same time.

Taki did not initially reply, but did mentally savor the looks of surprise/admiration on their faces. "If you're through playing games, shall we continue?" she simply stated before turning around and continued walking.

The other three were a little put off by that, until Link gathered them in a huddle a whispered an idea to them, their eyes widening a bit before smiling and nodding at it, a few chuckles escaping their lips as they did.

Sensing something was off, Taki looked behind her to see the three looking directly at her with a rather predatory look on their faces, almost as if they were all ready to pounce on her-

"Get her!"

The yell from the three of them made her eyes widen in surprise as she quickly jumped back, wondering what was going on as she tried to keep her distance.

"We're all 'it' now, so now we're all going to tag YOU!" Link declared with a laugh while still trying to tag her.

"Oh, is that so?" Taki replied challengingly as she kept dodging.

"That's right, now hold still!" Seong Mi-Na shouted as she reached out to try to tag her, only to miss by several inches. This repeated several times as the three tried in vain to tag her before she moved to retreat.

"Oh, no you don't!" Talim stated as she made a move from the side, only to see Taki bend down backward from her attempt, then turn it into a backflip, followed by a few more as the three kept coming after her before running into a sprint away from them.

This was definitely not what Taki had expected. Any time she was chased in the past, it was usually from the Fu-Ma trying to kill her. And yet, here, she found herself...dare she say, almost _enjoying_ herself. Just a little. Her mind went back to the training with Link (yes training, not racing, she said to herself), and now she found herself in a similar situation and yet wasn't sure what to make of it. She had abandoned the term "fun" as Link called it a long time ago, and yet...was this what it felt like?

She shoved that aside as she focused on keeping her distance. While not one to play such games, she still had a little competitive spirit in her, and she was not one to let anyone win against her. They would have to earn it.

The other three were getting frustrated as time went on. For well over an hour, they were unable to tag her despite the three of them chasing her at once. She would weave, run, jump, and flip her way to safety with several inches to spare from being tagged. The constant running forced them to stop and catch their breath every now and then, allowing Taki to do the same who also needed a breather in those times.

"She's...good," Talim said in between breaths.

"Ugh, this is insane! How does she keep doing that?" Seong Mi-Na angrily commented, glaring at her a little which just made Taki reply with a smirk, agitating her a little more.

"It's like she's done this before!" said Link.

"I have, actually," Taki replied, getting their attention. "Having had to fight off the Fu-Ma several times, I've had experience being chased by multiple enemies at once. This is nothing new to me." Well, that stunk, they thought. "And at this rate, I doubt any of you will ' _tag_ ' me by the time we reach our destination. Or pass out in exhaustion. Whichever comes first," she added, rather offhandedly, which lit a fire in them at that last part.

"Oh, yeah? We'll see about that! Come on!" Link declared, gesturing to his friends before running after Taki. Once again, she proved too nimble for them as she ran and jumped out of the way. This continued for another twenty minutes before finally, the frustration was too much for one of them.

"Grrr...Alright," Seong Mi-Na started before quickly grabbing her Zanbatou and spun it several times. "Try dodging THIS!" she declared before swinging it at her.

Taki widened, then narrowed, her eyes at this development. "Oh, is THAT how you want to play?" Taki commented as she found herself now dodging a six-foot weapon from "tagging" her with considerably more difficulty.

"Ha! You admit we've been playing! NOT training!" Link boasted.

Taki ignored that, instead focusing on dodging Seong Mi-Na's strikes. However, she couldn't dodge on her own for long before it reached the point where she had no choice but to pull out one of her own blades to block a strike, a loud 'CLANG' resulting from the move as they locked blades. "Hmph. Not bad. But you still haven't 'tagged' me."

"Then, how about THIS?!" shouted Link as he jumped high in the air, his own sword raised to strike. Taki quickly dodged to the side, only to have to pull out her second blade to block another strike from Talim who had pulled out her Elbow Blades.

Suddenly, the odds were not very good for her as she parried a few more strikes before jumping backward in a flip to avoid a low swing at her legs from Seong Mi-Na. 'Hmm, it seems they have at least _some_ concept of teamwork,' she thought. Skilled as she was, though, she could only hold out for so long if she just kept blocking their attacks.

Deciding to take a different approach, she quickly turned and ran to a sprint to gain some distance. "Oh, no you don't!" Link declared as he followed. However, he didn't quite run directly at her. Instead, he ran so as to run to the side of her, managing to do so to her left, even managing to get ahead of her.

Seeing what he was doing, Seong Mi-Na spoke to Talim. "Stay on her. I'm going to surround her from the other side."

"Right," Talim replied, starting to see what she was getting at.

Finally, Link was about twelve feet to Taki's left and roughly six feet in front of her as they continued running before he slowly moved closer to her, gradually forcing her to her right. She slowed down a bit, wary of what move he might make while also wondering what he was up to. He closed in a little more, making her shift considerably to her right, only to again alter her course at seeing a tree right in front of her. This slight hesitation allowed Seong Mi-Na, whom by now was not far to her right, to close in. 'Grrr, very clever.'

Faced with little option, she took yet another sharp right so as to run directly away from the tree, only to see Talim cut her off directly in front of her, making her stop in her tracks. Unable to retreat, she had to resort to blocking and dodging their strikes. "We have you now!" Seong Mi-Na gloated to her.

"I'm not defeated yet," Taki replied as she dodge another swing. She was then forced to maneuver towards the tree as she continued blocking and dodging their strikes, their positioning now with Link in front of her, Talim now to her right, Seong Mi-Na now to her left, and the tree right behind her with a trunk roughly two to three feet in diameter.

She tried to think of a way out, but she was forced to concentrate her efforts on dodging the other girls' strikes, unable to properly move with the tree behind her so as to retreat without risk of getting "tagged." Suddenly, an idea came to her as she jumped backed in what limited space she had between her and the tree. After landing, she hesitated little, then quickly moved as if to run with the girls reacting as if to do the same, only to just as suddenly pull back, successfully faking them out. This allowed her to fool them just long enough so she could get a small running start the other way towards the tree. Seong Mi-Na tried to cut her off with her Zanbatou, thrusting it near the base of the tree, but Taki simply jumped up and off of the tree, allowing her to run away from them.

"Oh, no you don't!" Link cried as he suddenly ran after her while also pulling out his Hookshot. Acting on instinct, he fired it at the tree, and as soon as it struck, he immediately jumped and then hit the switch so as to pull himself in to increase his speed. But because of how he was running and now jumping, the change in momentum had him moving in a rather fast curve. Just half a second later, he then let go of the Hookshot, changing his momentum again...right towards Taki. "I HAVE YOU NOW, TAKI-CHAN!" he shouted as he landed right in front of her

Taki widened her eyes in surprise at seeing Link flying and landing right in front her after he said that. She quickly tried to stop and dodge to the side, but her forward momentum prevented her from doing so in time as Link was able to adjust in time and reach an arm out and finally tag her. "HA! TAG! YOU'RE-!"

"HEY!"

Though...he didn't quite "tag" her so much as he did "grab" her. And what he grabbed wasn't something like an arm or even her hair. No, in the process of tagging Taki, he ended up "tagging" her in the chest—or rather, he ended up _grabbing_ her chest as he ended up grasping one of her breasts, and their momentum was such that it made her turn slightly from it, indicating a rather firm grip on it as well. Almost as soon as it happened, and before Link even had a chance to pull it away, Taki quickly grabbed his offending wrist, Link instantly freezing him in place from the move as they stood almost side-by-side now.

'Oh, goddesses, she's going to kill me,' Link thought, now suddenly very worried as he started sweating nervously. Because of how quickly she grabbed his wrist, his hand was still on her chest, but he was afraid to try to move it away lest he accidentally further incur her wrath. He could just feel the danger in the air, gulping nervously as he wondered how to get out of this alive. Taki's head was turned downward and away from him towards the ground, but he was sure she had a very angry look on her face right now. After a very tense half a minute of silence, Link swallowed another nervous gulp before speaking.

"Uh, go-gomen, I mean, I'm sorry. That was an accident," Link stammered nervously, which just made Taki start to shake in rage. 'Uh, oh. Better try to calm her fast,' he thought as he tried to raise his other hand up in a calming gesture while also moving to release his...grip on the other. "I didn't mean-"

"HENTAI!"

SMACK!

Almost the instant she felt Link move, she quickly tightened her grip on his wrist to the point of almost breaking it while simultaneously moving it aside and punching him in an overhead strike with her other hand. The other girls flinched at seeing Link suddenly getting punched hard in the back of his head, knocking him to the ground as a result. "I'm done playing," she said very softly yet very sharply and emphatically before angrily walking away.

"Ow..." Link cried weakly. Goddesses, she hits hard, he thought as he gingerly rubbed the back of his head. He slowly stood up, still rubbing his head as he turned to where Taki walked off, a guilty look on his face. He didn't mean to do that; she tried to duck and dodge around him, so he had to adjust to tag her. And with their positioning at the time, he just happened to...tag her in the chest. Accidentally, of course. She knew that...right? He hissed a little at feeling what appeared to be a bump on his head. Glad he wore a cap to hide it, he thought.

"OH MY GOD! ARE THOSE REAL!?"

The sudden shout made Link blink in slight confusion as he turned towards Seong Mi-Na, who was the one who had suddenly shouted and saw her pointing at him with total shock on her face. Was _what_ real? He then saw Talim right by her who had a similarly surprised look on her face as she also looked at Link. At first, he was still confused by their actions before his eyes suddenly widened in slight horror at what they were likely seeing as he slowly raised his fingers to the sides of his head. His eyes widened even more at what he felt. Sure enough, he felt his long ears...only they were on the OUTSIDE of his cap.

'Uh, oh,' he thought, his heart panicking from the discovery. Apparently while rubbing his injury, he accidentally rubbed his cap back to the point his ears became exposed. Taki's punch may have pushed it back a little as well. Suddenly, he was filled with panic and worry on how the others would react to this, but he barely had a moment to process this as all of a sudden he was startled and surprised when Seong Mi-Na had quickly run up to him to get a closer look, standing right in front of him while rubbing her fingers against his ears.

"Oh my God, they ARE REAL!" she squealed as her thumbs rubbed across the tips, confirming her disbelieving eyes at what she was seeing (and feeling).

Link found himself frozen in place. Partially in surprise at her sudden actions and _reactions_ , and partially at the fact that because of the way Seong Mi-Na was bent over to touch his ears, he was granted a very close-up view of her cleavage, his face hovering just a few inches away, making him blush as red as a tomato.

"(Ahem) Seong Mi-Na," a voice interrupted.

"What?" Seong Mi-Na blinked in confusion. She turned to the voice in question and finding Taki, only to see she was pointing at something directly beneath her. She looked down at where she was pointing, her eyes suddenly widening in response. She looked up to see the now reddened face of Link before quickly jumping back in embarrassment. "EEP! Um, sorry, Link," she said nervously.

Link stayed silent, staring blankly in space, his face still a bright red. He stayed the way for several seconds before blinking at the sudden feeling of his ears being touched again. He turned and this time saw it was Talim, who rubbed her index fingers and thumbs very gently across the edges of it for but a few seconds before pulling away. "Um, sorry. I just...wanted to touch them too," she said meekly, a blush on her face as she did before stepping back to give him space.

The group stood in uncomfortable silence as the girls couldn't stop looking towards Link, who slowly adjusted his cap to cover his ears, a worried look adorning his face as he did. This scenario was something he was always worried about as it would lead to questions he wasn't sure how to answer. But more importantly, he was worried it might frighten those around him away—though based on their initial reactions, that appeared to be far from the case here, he thought with a light blush. Apparently, Chie and her son had a similar reaction when they first saw his ears, rubbing their fingers across them to make sure they were real (though he was unconscious at the time).

"So, um...those are real. Right?" Seong Mi-Na nervously spoke up, trying to break the awkward silence. Link gave a nervous swallow before slowly nodding, finding it difficult to look them in the eye. "So...are you an elf then?"

"Um...well, you see...eh," he stammered, trying to figure out how to explain it to them. What did he do? Did he give a cover story like Hachibei and Taki instructed should this happen? Or did he tell them where he was _really_ from, which would mean sharing his origins and the details thereof?

"We can discuss this later," another voice spoke up, getting their attention. They turned to see Taki with her arms crossed, a rather upset/annoyed look on her face. Link wasn't sure if it was from his ears being exposed or the...incident from earlier, but he kept silent, while also silently thanking her for stepping in. "For now, just consider him another victim of the Evil Seed. We'll discuss more later."

Seong Mi-Na and Talim looked at each other, not sure what to make of that. They were naturally curious about Link with this latest development, but the look and tone from Taki indicated she wasn't leaving any room for argument. Finally, Talim spoke up. "Alright," she said slowly with a nod, Seong Mi-Na slowly doing the same.

"Good. Then let us be on our way. Link, get your Hookshot," Taki replied rather coldly before immediately turning around and moving forward. The other three looked at each other in uncertainty before Link slowly did as instructed.

'This is going to be another long day,' he thought, the worried look still on his face as he wondered what would happen from here.

* * *

 **A/N: Annnd, done. Well, that was rather unexpected, wasn't it? I wanted to show the whole trip wasn't going to be all sunshine and rainbows amongst the group and issues may come up between them every now and then.**

 **Anytime someone is distressed, I always want to help in any way I can, and when it comes to women I've dated, I've had times where I was unsure how to comfort a woman who was crying, and on more than one occasion she has snapped at me when I tried to help or comfort her or even just tried to talk to her. I think all guys have felt similarly in such cases, and so I tried to express such thoughts and worries in Link. Hope I made such thoughts look at least somewhat relatable.**

 **FYI, anybody catch the Naruto quote earlier? Or the Justice League Unlimited quote? Just some fun little Easter Eggs I added :)**

 **And just as a little teaser, more SC characters will be coming in the next chapter. Can you guess who they might be?**

 **But in the present, a secret of Link's has suddenly been revealed, and now he has to respond to it. How will Seong Mi-Na and Talim react, and just what will Link be willing to share? And what will Taki have to say about it?**

 **Stay tuned!**

 **For now, this is Agent Ghost-Writer 000 signing off.**


End file.
